


Will You Remember Me? Forever.

by ProfessionalPessimist



Category: TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cute Huening Kai, Fluff and Angst, Good Hyung Choi Yeonjun, Hurt Choi Beomgyu, Hurt Kang Taehyun, Immortality, M/M, Magic, Magic-Users, Multi, Protective Choi Yeonjun, Sad Choi Beomgyu, Sweetheart Choi Beomgyu, Sweetheart Huening Kai
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:35:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27582811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProfessionalPessimist/pseuds/ProfessionalPessimist
Summary: Being the last seer of his kind, Beomgyu has been on the run without a home for the past five centuries. After feeling drawn to return to Seoul his life of loneliness may change forever. Can four human college students really be the thing to bring happiness back to him? Will those humans be able to accept him for who he is? or will putting himself out there attract more harm than good?
Relationships: Choi Beomgyu/Choi Soobin, Choi Beomgyu/Choi Soobin/Choi Yeonjun/Huening Kai/Kang Taehyun, Choi Beomgyu/Choi Yeonjun, Choi Beomgyu/Huening Kai, Choi Beomgyu/Kang Taehyun
Comments: 25
Kudos: 112





	1. Prologue: Painting Grays

Being an immortal seer used to have many perks, but as the sun rises on Beomgyu’s seventh century on this earth they're getting harder and harder to see. The world used to be so different just a few hundred years ago. People used to come to the seers for advice, quests, or just knowledge. They were a trusted race of people among the ones who had magic. They were seen as intelligent helpers, many working as advisers to the most influential people who have ever lived. But, nothing lasts forever. 

Beomgyu always resented his birth. He was brought into this world at the very end of the golden age of magic. Only getting to experience the beauty of magical society for a century and a few decades before it all fell away. Just as times change and tides turn, so do the opinions of the public. Where seers used to be seen as a magical aid, the influx of new fully human kingdoms had caused paranoia to spread like fire. The seers were deemed a dangerous people and exterminated. Well, most of them. 

Beomgyu wouldn’t say he was the last of his kind. On one hand, that would be presumptuous of him. He didn’t doubt the ability of some of his kin to endure. And on the other, to admit he was the last, would be admitting something that he truly tried his best not to think about. That he was totally and unchangeably alone. 

For the better part of the past five centuries Beomgyu had been on the run. Living in different societies, never long enough for anyone to notice he hasn’t aged. Never long enough for him to get attached.  
His most recent destination has been Seoul. He’s not sure why, but he feels drawn to the city. He’s never purposely moved so close to his original home. On the contrary, he has been avoiding even going near that continent for so long. He’s sure it has changed, everywhere has. 

He has to shake his head slightly to break him out of his musings, nothing is the way it used to be. The world is no longer the brimming with magic woodland it used to be. It has been industrialized, humanized. This isn’t his world. He has to remember, he may be close to his old homeland, but he truly has none now. He is an alien in this city. He is magic in a crowd of humans. 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

Today couldn’t go any worse for Hueningkai. His alarm didn’t go off this morning because his phone was dead and didn’t charge last night, making him late to his only lecture today. 

‘Fridays are supposed to be fun.’ He sighed to himself as he walked across campus. He needed something to lift his spirits. A small quirk of a smile crept onto his face as he thought of his favorite coffee shop just off campus. He could really use a pick me up, in more ways than one. Not only did the little cafe have the best iced americano in all of Korea (at least in his opinion), but Yeonjun-hyung worked there. Getting to see one of his closest friends would definitely make his day better.

He started in the direction of the coffee shop with more of a spring in his step than before. He even put in his earbuds and was enjoying his favorite playlist that Soobin-hyung had made for him. He rounded the last corner, and just as he was feeling the negative cloud that had been following him begin to dissipate, he ran into something. Something small and soft, something that yelped and hit the ground. Oh shoot!

Hueningkai quickly pulled out his earbuds in horror, “Oh my god! I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention! Are you okay!” He crouched down to the stranger on the ground, hands ghosting over the small figure not sure what to do. 

The stranger looked up and just smiled softly, “I’m okay.” he waved his hand a little with the words.

Hueningkai couldn’t help the sharp intake of breath he took when he made eye contact with the other boy. He was absolutely stunning. His dark hair had an effortless wave to it and his eyes sparkled in a way that Kai just couldn’t place. He looked ethereal. 

He was broken out of his staring by the stranger starting to get up off the ground. 

“Here, let me help you,” Hueningkai scrambled to offer his hand, which after a second of hesitation the other took. 

“Thanks,” The stranger had a soft voice, and an almost foreign accent. Not from anywhere Kai had ever heard. His voice was perfect though, he was sure of that much. 

“Oh! your arm is bleeding!” He just noticed the scrape, leaking out the crimson liquid. The smaller boy hadn’t seemed to notice yet either, looking down at the mention. 

He smiled tightly, but not unkindly, “It’s okay, just a scratch.” 

Kai just shook his head, “I feel awful, I was the one not paying attention to where I was going, let me help you-” 

“I-It’s really okay.” the smaller boy seemed a bit overwhelmed by his concern. 

Hueningkai pulled back a little bit, “I was on my way to that cafe over there,” He pointed in the shop’s general direction, “My friend works there and I’m sure they have bandaids and stuff. A-And I can pay you back for almost taking you out with like a coffee or something…” 

There was a pause for a moment where Kai was almost worried he had overstepped and the beautiful stranger would refuse. 

But he gave a little laugh ( probably the most beautiful noise he had ever heard), “Sure, I guess that wouldn’t hurt.” 

Kai beamed and started walking the last couple of feet over to the shop, “I’m Hueningkai by the way, what’s your name?”

The shorter considered for a moment, ‘he seems to do that alot’ Kai mused.

“I'm Choi Beomgyu”


	2. Anywhere the Wind Blows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beomgyu meets Hueningkai and Yeonjun. A darkness approaches.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No beta we die like men XD

The cafe wasn’t very busy, well, not that busy for a friday at three pm. Okay, so it was a little crowded, but maybe a more public environment would make Beomgyu feel more comfortable. Hueningkai tried his best not to overthink as he guided the smaller boy over to a booth tucked into the corner of the shop.

He assured Beomgyu that he would be right back, and approached the counter. At first Kai didn’t see Yeonjun, he began to feel a little worried. Yeonjun-hyung always knew what to do and his whole game plan at this point had been to get his help. When he got to the front of the line, he ordered two coffees and asked the young woman if she knew where he was.

She seemed slightly taken aback, but then told Kai that he was on his break. He felt a wave of relief wash over him. She offered to go get him for him and he nodded eagerly, thanking her profusely.

He grabbed the two coffees off the counter almost as soon as they were set down in a rush to get back to Beomgyu. At first when he had been waiting he tried to subtly shoot a glance at the boy, but when he turned Beomgyu seemed to immediately know that he was being looked at. Quickly meeting his eyes with a shy wave making Kai’s whole face heat up.

Now, he set down the drinks, one in front of Beomgyu, bringing the other to his lips.  
“I hope that’s okay,” he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, “I wasn’t sure what you’d like so…” he trailed off, watching the smaller boy inspect the cup.

“Whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll be fine” He gave Kai a small smile, Beomgyu had yet to fully grin or laugh. It made Kai worry that he was making the other uncomfortable.

He was about to state this worry when he saw Yeonjun approaching their table. Yeonjun crossed the cafe quickly, eyeing Hueningkai up and down first, ensuring he was unhurt, then turning his attention to the newcomer.

“I’m Yeonjun,” he spoke briskly, Kai could tell that he was feeling protective. Beomgyu looked shy. He took that as his que to cut in.

“This is Beomgyu…” He hadn’t actually asked how old Beomgyu was yet, so he just decided to skip the honorifics. He’d apologise later, “I accidentally ran into him outside,” Hueningkai looked down, suddenly finding the table top very interesting. Yeonjun seemed to catch his drift though, even with the lack of details.

He sighed and ruffled Kai’s hair, “I’ll go get the first aid kit.”

Once Yeonjun had gone back to the breakroom Kai turned his attention back to Beomgyu.

“So, how old are you? I wasn’t sure wether to call you Hyung or not-” Beomgyu actually giggled a little at that, although Hueningkai wasn’t sure why, he would take it.

“It’s definitely Hyung.” Beomgyu said with certainty, Kai just nodded.

“O-okay,” He gave a smile, “Well, i’m 18...”

Beomgyu seemed to consider for a moment his response, Kai just quirked his head in confusion

“I’m 19,” Beomgyu finally decided to respond with,

“I’m your Hyung then.” Yeonjun had returned just at the right time, before it got too awkward. “Let’s see your arm, Beomgyu-ah”

He hesitated for just a moment before removing the napkin he had been using to apply pressure up until that point.  
Yeonjun just clicked his tongue, ghosting his finger around the wound. “It’s not too deep, I’m just going to clean it and put a bandaid on it, Okay?” Beomgyu nodded his consent.

It was quiet around the table for a moment while Yeonjun dug around in the first aid kit for some disinfectant, Kai took a sip of his drink before he spoke again.

“So Beomgyu-Hyung, are you new? I feel like I haven’t seen you around before.” The smaller nodded again.

“Yea, I actually just moved in two days ago.” Using his non-occupied hand to rub the back of his head. A quite endearing gesture. “Well, moved in is a bit of a stretch... My apartment is a mess.” Kai hummed in understanding.

“When I moved into my dorm it was an absolute disaster,” He giggled as Yeonjun nodded and made a comical sound of affirmation, “I probably still have boxes that aren’t unpacked yet.”

Yeonjun cut in then, looking up from where he was wiping beomgyu’s arm, “I know you do,” looking pointedly at Kai, “Taehyun tells me that your mess takes up more than half the room.”

Kai’s cheeks turned a dusty shade of crimson, laughing slightly nervously, he turned his attention back to Beomgyu in an attempt to change the subject, “Taehyun’s my roommate....”

Beomgyu nods, “Ah...”

Kai picked up a little too late that the shorter boy seemed to be slightly overwhelmed by all the conversation. Luckily Yeonjun was one step ahead. He was always very good at being aware of how the people around him were feeling. It was like his superpower, being in tune with others emotions. He would always brag that his great great great great great great grandma was half magical and that was how he could sense people's vibes. But Huengkai thought that it was just how good of a friend he was.

“So where are you from Beomgyu-ah?” Yeonjun had finished cleaning the wound by now and was rummaging around for a band-aid.

“Oh um, w-well- I’ve lived in a few different places, I was living in the UK before this but-uh I was born here. Well , not in Seoul. But nearby.” The tips of his ears were bright red, his free hand was trembling slightly.

Kai grinned and Yeonjun had the beginnings of a small smile creeping onto his face, “Wow! That's so cool! I’ve always wanted to live in a different country!”

Beomgyu smiled a little more, he seemed to be loosening up slightly, and by the time Yeonjun had declared his arm finished his hands had stopped shaking entirely.

“Yea, I guess it’s kind of cool.” He looked up shyly. Kai tried to give him what he thought was an encouraging smile.  
“So where else have you lived?”

Beomgyu sighed wistfully, “Well, the UK and I stayed in Japan for a while. And the United States-”

“Wow Beomgyu-ah, you really get around.” Yeonjun cut him off with an unreadable gaze.

“U-uh I guess,” Beomgyu rubbed the back of his neck looking slightly more shy once again.

Hueningkai felt the need to shoot his Hyung a pointed look, he got the memo.

Standing up slowly, “Well, I better get back to work,” offering his hand out for Beomgyu to shake. “It was nice to meet you Beomgyu-ah.”

He takes it after only a moment, “Nice to meet you too Yeonjun-Hyung” Smiling softly, Kai watches the exchange.

Turning his attention back to Beomgyu after Yeonjun makes his way to back behind the counter.

“I should probably get going soon,” Beomgyu ran his finger along to the top of his coffee cup idly looking slightly torn, “I got lots of stuff to unpack still you know.” He flicked his gaze up to Kai’s.

“Oh yea, sure,” He nodded, understanding. Before Beomgyu could get up though Kai touched his wrist holding him back for a second, “Hey Hyung.”

“Yea?”

“We should exchange phone numbers,” Beomgyu’s eyes bulged a little, making Kai feel a slight panic swell in his throat, “You seem cool, that’s all, a-and you could probably use some help unpacking right? I just still feel bad for knocking you over-”

Hueningkai cut off his own ramblings when he saw Beomgyu smile. A full, all his teeth smile.

“Sure,”  
Kai scrambled to get his phone out of his pocket, offering it to the smaller to enter his phone number into. The other did so quickly, promptly handing the phone back to its owner.

Kai smiled to himself looking down at the new contact after he and Beomgyu had said their goodbyes. He was determined to be Beomgyu’s friend. It’s not that he felt bad for him or anything, it’s just that for some reason he felt inexplicably drawn to him. Like it was more than fate that had brought them together. He shook his head slightly, that was just silly.

“Huyka-ah,” He was broken out of his thoughts by Yeonjun standing over him, looking resolute.

“Hyung?”

Yeonjun just sighed, sliding into the booth. Taking the seat that had been previously occupied by Beomgyu.

“Be careful-”

“Hyuuuung” Kai rolled his eyes, turning his face to look at the ceiling  
.  
“Yah. Let me finish,” Yeonjun swatted at his hand to regain his attention, “All I was going to say was to be careful with people like that.”

He wasn’t sure why, but Kai suddenly felt a surge of protectiveness wash over him.

“People like what?”

Yeonjun just sighed again, seemingly becoming more frustrated. He leaned forward, “Look Huyka, He just gave me a bad vibe okay?”

“Really Hyung? A bad vibe?” Kai huffed, he knew he was being slightly immature as he crossed his arms across his chest, but so was Yeonjun. So it was fair. “Well, he gave me a good vibe, what about that?”

Yeonjun let out a breath to compose himself before responding, “All i’m saying is be careful okay,” he raised his hands in mock surrender, “I care about you, I wouldn’t want you to get hurt…”

Kai felt himself deflate, why was he so upset anyway? Over someone he had just met.

“Sorry Hyung.”

Yeonjun just ruffled his hair, “It’s okay, that’s our Hueningkai for ya. Always seeing the best in people.”

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

“The seer has revealed himself” a dark figure rolled his neck from side to side, feeling the satisfying crack of his stiff joints.

“Find him.” It wasn’t a question.

“I will.” The figure nodded

“He needs to be…” The shadow inspected his overgrown nails, “Exterminated.”

“It will be done.”

“The Prophecy must not come to pass,” although his voice was raspy due to underuse it carried a tone of purpose and power that made the servant cower.

“I Know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: More Kai and Beom, and and introduction to Beomgyu's abilities.


	3. Into the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beomgyu has a vision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would sell my soul for feedback XD

_ Unknown Number: Hey Beomgyu-Hyung! It’s me Hueningkai!  _

_ Unknown Number: My offer still stands if you want any help unpacking! _

_ Unknown Number: I’m totally free tomorrow if you need it! :) _

_ Unknown Number: Btw it’s the Hueningkai you ran into on Friday! Just in case you forgot! _

Hueningkai set down his phone, face palming internally. Of course Beomgyu knew who he was. They literally met yesterday. He didn’t have too much time to dwell in his own awkwardness as his phone buzzed under his palm. He picked it up maybe a bit too eagerly, no one was here to see so he didn’t care too much. 

_ Beomgyu-Hyung: Hey Hueningkai-ah, some help would be great tomorrow. How about 3? _

Kai felt a huge, probably embarrassingly so, smile appear on his face. 

_ Hueningkai: Okay! 3 it is! I’ll see you then Hyung!  _

_ Beomgyu-Hyung: :) Okay.  _

Beomgyu wasn’t sure what he was doing anymore. He was currently sitting on the floor of his newest living space, surrounded by packed boxes, staring at his phone. The same phone that he had pushed away from himself not even 12 seconds earlier. Sending the already old and beat up device sliding across the cold wooden floor. 

Why was he allowing himself to become attached? What was wrong with him? Had seven centuries taught him nothing? Or did any of that really matter when he was knocked literally off his feet at just the idea of having a friend again? So long with no one, just him against the world had really done a number on his psyche, huh? 

He ran a hand down his face as he laid fully down on the floor. Closing his eyes for a moment. What would it be like? For just a little bit? To pretend to be human, make some human friends and maybe enjoy a few years before having to leave again. What could be the harm? 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

Beomgyu was scrolling aimlessly on his laptop when three oclock hit the next day. Hueningkai hadn’t arrived yet, but he still made sure to be extra careful that he fully closed out of the discussion board he had been reading. Although to some, magic was no more than an ancient tale, there were still few who believed in its existence. Humans that congregated on discreet corners of the internet to discuss theories. 

Of course magic wasn’t fully stomped out of the earth. How possibly could that be? Beomgyu always had faith that while someone like him was alive, that there must be others. He took solace in the conspiracy theorists of the internet, sometimes even chiming in with his in depth knowledge on a topic. 

Every few years there were rumors of a hidden magical community, a mage imprisoned in a foreign country, or a phenomenon that could only conceivably be explained by magical intervention. If Beomgyu closed his eyes hard enough he could almost hear his mothers voice,  _ “Men will always believe that they run the world Gyu, but without magic, Man would be nothing”  _ Those words still rung true today. Even in the human dominated society, nothing could disconnect Beomgyu from his magic. A constant thrumming presence under his skin. 

He was broken out of his musings by a tentative knock on his front door. A bit of a buzz ran through him as he approached the door. He hadn’t even tried unpacked his last place, just kinda lived out of boxes like a caveman. So it was somewhat of a thrill to regain a sense of normalcy and to experience something new. Well, not new, but something he hadn’t experienced in many centuries. Human companionship. 

He cracked the door open, saw who it was and opened it fully. 

“Hi Beomgyu-Hyung!” Hueningkai was in full energy, bouncing on his toes as he stood on the threshold of his apartment. Although much taller than Beomgyu himself, Kai had a certain type of childlike excitement that radiated from him. It did wonders to endear people to him immediately. 

“Hey,” He stepped to the side, holding the door open for Kai to enter, “sorry it’s a bit of a mess in here.” Beomgyu ran a hand through his hair, cringing as he surveyed the state of his living room.

“No worries Hyung! That’s what I came over for after all.” Kai pulled his shoes off, placing them next to Beomgyu’s by the door. As he stood back up, he placed his hands on his hips. 

“Where should we start? ” He turned his perpetual smile back to Beomgyu. 

They worked with some friendly chatter for the next hour. Beomgyu decided it would probably be best to start in the living room. 

“Where should these go Hyung?” Kai’s voice sounded confused. After opening boxes of normal house things, like pillows and nicknacks. The last thing Hueningkai expected to open was a box of what looked to be ancient books. 

“What is it?” Beomgyu didn’t even look up from the box he was working on, expecting Kai to answer right away. When there was a delay in response; that was when he turned to look at his companion. 

“Uh, well i-it’s a bunch of books,” Kai picked one up delicately off the top, “U-um I can’t even read the cover.” 

Beomgyu crossed the room a little too quickly to be conspicuous, “You can just leave those in the box,” he took the volume gently from Hueningkai’s hold. 

“What language are these in Hyung?” Kai’s voice dropped to match the reverence that Beomgyu seemed to hold when looking at the books. 

Beomgyu clicked back into the present, putting the book back in the box, 

“I don’t really know…” he looked Kai in the eyes, slightly glassy, “They’re heirlooms from my parents. I’m not really sure where they came from, but they were special to them… so they’re special to me.” 

Kai nodded, smiling contentedly at his hyung. 

“I’m just gonna move this box to my bedroom,” Beomgyu moved to pick it up and Kai moved so that the other had room to maneuver. 

Beomgyu disappeared for just a second into one of the other rooms within the apartment. 

“We got through this stuff a lot faster than I thought we would,” Kai remarked looking over their handiwork so far, “I’m gonna need to get you to come help me clean my dorm.” 

Beomgyu just giggled, “I'm sure your roommate would appreciate that.” 

“Oh not you too!” Kai gave Beomgyu’s arm a playful nudge, “Really, Taehyun makes a big deal about my mess, but he’s not that much better. He’s just dramatic.” 

Beomgyu raised his eyebrows, prompting Kai to continue, “He’s all bark, no bite, honestly.” Kai shrugged. 

“He sounds nice,” Beomgyu laughed a bit sarcastically. 

“He is nice Hyung, he just has a different way of showing it,” He smiled thinking about his roommate and all the late nights they had spent laughing together, “He’s a little spitfire. He’s like one thirty-eighth Fae or something like that… That's why he’s got a temper, and he’s so short.” 

Beomgyu’s smile faltered for a moment, but quickly jumped back into place, “Wow that’s cool! You don’t meet people like that very often anymore.” 

Kai didn’t seem to notice his slight slip of discomfort and continued to barrel onward in this line of conversation.

“Oh yea! Yeonjunnie-Hyung has a tiny bit of magic in him too! He always can like sense people’s vibes or something. He doesn't really know what type of magic he is though, I think maybe like a mage or a seer or something...” 

Beomgyu felt his mouth go dry at the mention of his people.

“Cool,” was as much of a response he could muster, continuing to listen dumbly to Kai ramble on about his friends. 

Why did he think he could fit in with these people? Humans thought having an ancient ancestor with magic was the closest they'd ever be to it. How would Hueningkai even react if he knew a pureblood seer was sitting right next to him? 

“...What do you think, Hyung?” Well, shit. 

“Sorry...W-what?” Kai just giggled.

“I just asked if you were ready to start on the kitchen, hyung?” 

Beomgyu smiled at the change in topic, effectively breaking him out of his self induced funk. 

“Yea, I think we’ve mostly got everything out here.” 

“Cool!” Hueningkai bounced up with his never ending energy, leading the way into the small kitchen. 

There weren’t as many boxes in here, cause really, how much silverware did one person need? But they started unpacking nevertheless. 

Hueningkai even put on a playlist, saying something about Beomgyu going to love his taste in music. 

They were getting through these boxes much faster than the other ones, once a place for each thing had been established it got easy to just open, wipe, and put away. 

That is until Beomgyu got to one box. A box that he had been slightly dreading. Of course all throughout his things there were magical items, books, and heirlooms. But these were his parents' old conduits. He wasn’t sure why he had held onto them, no one even practiced the old way of magic anymore. Him being a fourth generation seer, he didn’t need a conduit to perform spells. 

He wasn’t even quite sure how they ended up with all his kitchen boxes. He shrugged, these could just go in some cabinet. He’d deal with them later, when Hueningkai wasn’t around to ask questions. 

He hefted the box up off the counter, When did this box get heavy? He must have made some kind of sound indicating his struggle because the next thing he knew Kai was making his way across the kitchen. 

“Here let me help you with that!” Kai placed both his hands directly on Beomgyu’s forearms. And he felt something he hadn’t felt in many years. 

Maybe it was because he was out of practice, or because of the close proximity to magical objects, but his magic rushed up to meet the seeker. 

It had been so long since he had had a vision that Beomgyu didn’t even have a chance to think about trying to stop it. 

Black overtook his vision. 

_ When he opened his eyes again the walls were on fire, he wasn’t in his apartment anymore. He wasn’t sure where he was. _

_ He heard screaming... Hueningkai? _

_ He tried to call out to him. No sound came out.  _

_ Beomgyu turned. There was a mother, she was crying. Screaming. Holding her baby. _

_ When he tried to approach, she just faded away. _

_ He saw the earth give way to a mighty warrior. A woman spoke,  _

_ “Magic will return to the earth, when unlit day heralds a new dawn on the wings of the fifth light.”  _

_ Her voice faded as Hueningkai’s screams became heard once more.  _

_ He didn’t even have time to consider her words, he began to run. Frantically looking for the human. He tried to speak, once again he could not.  _

_ A force grabbed him from behind, sending him tumbling to the floor _

_ “The seer reveals himself”  _

_ “I see you little mage...” the darkness was closing in now, making his breathing pick up. Sweat dripped down his brow. Eyes scanning frantically for the source of the voice  _

_ “It will be done.”  _

_ “Seoul…”  _

The sound of glass shattering was the first thing Beomgyu registered. 

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry hyung!” Kai was rambling his apologies as he crouched down to survey the damage done to the contents of the box.

Beomgyu couldn’t bring himself to care much right now, he felt his hands trembling, and his breathing was ragged. A stray tear running down his cheek. 

He sniffed, forcing himself back to the present moment, quickly wiping at his eyes and crouching down next to Kai. 

Anything breakable in the box was definitely unfixable, “It’s okay Hueningkai-ah,” he put his hand on the youngers shoulder, trying his best to school his expression into one that was less haunted, “ It was my fault anyway, I should have had a better grip on it.” He gave a strained smile. 

Kai just puffed his cheeks, “I was trying to repay you, not be more in debt!” 

Beomgyu laughed shakily, “It’s really okay, you're not in debt to me,” His voice must have betrayed something to the younger because he leveled Beomgyu with an inquisitive stare. It was quiet for a moment, 

“Are you okay hyung?”

Beomgyu felt the air leave his lungs in a soft woosh, how could he lie to this kid. Hold on, what was he thinking? There wasn’t any other option but to lie. 

“Yea I’m good!” He tried to be as enthusiastic as possible with his answer. 

Kai just gave him a skeptical nod, he didn’t seem to believe him, but he let the topic go for now. 

Beomgyu stood up, waving a hand at the broken contents of the box, “i’ll deal with that later,” He didn’t want to come off as rude, but Beomgyu really needed to be alone for a little while. Just to consider what he had just seen. 

It had been so long since he had even used his ability to have visions that the experience had left him quite shook up.

Kai looked at his phone, “Oh my god! Is it really 5:30 already,” he ran a hand through his already messy hair, “I’m sorry hyung, I’m meeting Soobin-Hyung for dinner at 6!” Kai began walking around his apartment, gathering his things that had been strewn around. 

He stopped abruptly, “Beomgyu-Hyung! You should come! Soobin-hyung is really cool, and i’m sure you guys would get along great-” 

“Oh no, I wouldn’t want to intrude-” Beomgyu shook his head quickly, feeling slightly overwhelmed by the sudden tonal shift in conversation. He really did not have the energy to keep up with such young beings. 

“You wouldn’t be intruding, Hyung! It’ll be fun!” 

He almost accepted, He almost did. But when he thought about his vision. And the sound of Kai screaming, he just couldn’t. 

“Maybe next time Hueningkai-ah!” Kai must have heard the intonation of his voice, because he didn’t push the topic any further. 

“”Okay Hyung, I’m gonna hold you to that,” Kai gave him a huge grin, hesitating for a moment before pulling Beomgyu into a hug. It was nice to be hugged by another person. It had been so long. Beomgyu had to resist the urge to hold on tighter when Kai began to pull away. 

“Thank you for helping me today,” He smiled at Kai, a real genuine smile. One that Kai returned immediately.

“Of course Hyung!” Beomgyu walked him to the door, “Text me Hyung!” 

“I will” 

And after the door shut behind Kai, Beomgyu was still smiling. 

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Into to Soobin and Taehyun in person. Some more friendship building and powers.


	4. Man in the Mirror

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang is almost all together. Beomgyu has a bad dream and makes a decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, this chapter took me a little longer.

Today had been a good day for Choi Yeonjun. Emphasis on had. His morning classes had been fine, he had even aced a surprise quiz in his music theory class, but of course it all had to go downhill. Okay, maybe he was being a bit dramatic. 

He was currently sitting at a table in the college cafeteria with his three closest friends: Soobin, Taehyun, and Hueningkai. Don’t get him wrong, he loves his friends, but as of late he’s having a hard time enjoying their company. 

It was weird, Yeonjun always knew he was slightly different. The tiniest bit magical. He could remember his grandmother telling him fantastical stories about magical warriors as she made her houseplants sparkle in the midday sun. 

His parents always denied it. It had confused him as a child, why did they ignore something so blatantly there. But as he got older he understood. People were afraid of magic. He was taught in history class about the Great Purge, magical rebellions, and most recently the pushes for the repealment of discriminatory laws against non-humans. 

He wouldn’t call himself an outspoken activist or anything. Of course he felt as though many laws were wrong and should be repealed, but he wasn’t really interested in being beat up for his beliefs. 

Yeonjun could never understand some people’s fear of magic. Maybe he was naive or just not very powerful, but he had always embraced his own. The tingle under his skin, alerting him a few seconds before it would be natural about a situation. He wasn’t as powerful as his grandma, as hard as he had tried as a child, he couldn’t make the plants sparkle or objects levitate. 

His small sprinkle of magic had always been comforting. And that led him to his current predicament. Ever since he had met Choi Beomgyu, some random kid that Hueningkai had just happened to run into, he couldn’t get rid of the nagging bad feeling in the back of his mind. He had never experienced anything like it, it was like an alarm bell that he couldn’t turn off was constantly ringing in his ears. 

The only repose he has had as of late has been when he’s alone in his dorm room. But, as soon as his roommate, Soobin, would walk through the door the bad feeling would just pick up again. It didn’t make any sense. The bad feeling was the weakest with Soobin, thank god. But around Taehyun it picked up, and around Hueningkai it was absolutely impossible to ignore. 

He knew that it had to have something to do with the Beomgyu kid, he just didn’t know what. One half of Yeonjun wanted to just hunt the kid down and interrogate him for all he knew, but the other half, equally as loud, wanted to never see him again. 

“Get off your phone Hyuka!” He was broken out of his thoughts by a hand reaching across him followed by a loud shriek. 

“Give that back!” Now Kai was reaching across him, flailing after Soobin who had snatched the younger’s phone. 

Taehyun smirked, making no move to help Hueningkai, “I’m curious too, who’s got you so interested? We know all your friends are sitting right here.” 

Kai pouted at the jab, “That was rude,” Still desperately trying to retrieve his phone.

“Oooooo!” Soobin was holding the phone up high out of Kai’s reach, tauntingly reading the coveted messages, “Who is Beom-Hyung?”   
Soobin’s mouth was shaped in a curious ‘o’ shape. Taehyun’s brows raised at the mention of an unfamiliar name. 

Yeonjun just cringed. He couldn’t catch a break could he? Of course Hueningkai had kept in touch with Beomgyu. Nothing could ever be easy. The rush of apprehensiveness crashed over him at just the mention of the boy. He needed to get to the bottom of this. 

“Hyuka! Who is this secret friend of yours!” Kai was blushing like crazy, “You know you're not supposed to keep secrets from your friends.” Soobin scolded with fake seriousness.

“He’s just someone I met recently,” Kai avoided the eye contact of his two friends, “He’s new around here so I helped him unpack some of his stuff… He’s really cool and nice.” 

“So...,” Soobin gave him a sly look before pouncing, “Is he attractive?” 

Kai spluttered something incoherent making Soobin and Taehyun erupt into laughter. 

“Sorry,” He didn’t look or sound sorry, Soobin sobered slightly, “Is he a college student.” 

Kai opened his mouth to answer, then closed it abruptly, “I don’t know,” Kai sounded like he hadn’t yet considered this, “I don’t think he is,” 

The mood around the table shifted. Soobin made confused eye contact with Yeonjun. He didn’t feel like getting involved in this conversation yet, so Yeonjun just offered a shrug. 

“Okay?...” Soobin seemed to be at a bit of a loss, “Does he work around here?” 

Kai shrugged, trying to play nonchalant, but ears turning bright red, “I’m not sure, we never really talked about that” 

Taehyun cut in, “So you know nothing about him.” his voice was blunt, just stating facts. 

Kai defended himself quickly, “Hey, all friendships have to start somewhere guys!” 

Soobin shrugged, being quite easy going, “fair enough,” reaching around Yeonjun once again to pat Kai’s back.

“How do we know he’s even real,” Taehyun was teasing, but Kai seemed to take offense. 

“He’s real!” He quickly put his hand on Yeonjun’s shoulder, “Yeonjun can testify! He met Beomgyu-Hyung at the same time I did.” 

This was really the last thing Yeonjun wanted to talk about right now, so he opted to just nod his confirmation. That seemed to be enough for Kai. 

“Not cool, Hyuka!” Soobin pointed an accusing finger, “ You let Yeonjun meet your secret friend before us!” 

“It’s not like I had a choice.” Yeonjun muttered.

“Well, I’d like to meet him too!” Soobin looked pointedly at Hueningkai. 

Kai scoffed then smiled, “If you would ever give me my phone back Hyung, I’ll text him and ask him if he wants to hang out.” It was Kai’s turn to give Soobin a look.

He just rolled his eyes, quickly handing back the device while muttering something that sounded strangely like ‘brat’.

_ Hueningkai-ah: Hyung! Are you free tomorrow for lunch? I want you to meet Soobin-Hyung!! _

_ Hueningkai-ah: and don’t worry, He wants to meet you too~ ;) _

  
  


+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

Sleep hadn’t been coming to Beomgyu as of late. It felt like he was constantly chasing after something completely unattainable. Like sand slipping through his fingertips. 

Needless to say, when sleep finally overtook him at about three A.M. or so, he wouldn’t deny it. The last thing he expected though was to immediately open his eyes to an unfamiliar terrain. He wasn’t greeted by his apartment's ceiling. Instead he was standing upright, looking out at a vast empty expanse. 

He takes a step forward, his bare feet getting wet from the water on the floor. Where was he? 

_ “Hello?”  _ Beomgyu startled at the sound of his own voice, it was distorted, almost faraway. It reverberated against the walls of the space. 

As the echo faded, something else became barely audible. Screaming. 

Beomgyu started to run. 

He wasn’t sure where he was going, but he knew whoever was making that sound needed help. 

“Help Me!” The cry was still hard to hear, even more so now with the sound of splashing that he was making from running. 

“I’m coming!” He came to an abrupt stop, looking around frantically, “Where are you!” 

The screaming suddenly became louder, very quickly becoming earsplitting. He was forced to his knees, hands shooting up to cover his ears. The noise didn’t stop increasing in volume. White spots danced across his vision. 

He could now feel the water that had previously been to his ankles, lapping up around his thighs. As the volume increased so did the water level. At this point he was having trouble making out a coherent thought, eyes squeezed shut, tears leaking out. Something warm and wet was on his hands that had been covering his ears. 

He just wanted it to stop. So he screamed. The water overtook him. High enough to cover his mouth and nose. He didn’t even have time to panic as the relief at the sound being muffled was overwhelming. 

He ventured at opening his eyes. It was dark, all around him. 

He felt himself slipping down. Sliding out of the water. Floating almost. 

Beomgyu blinked and found himself somewhere new. There was another person here. They were chained to a wall, whimpering and crying. Was this who had been crying? Beomgyu opened his mouth to call out to the figure as they raised their head. He felt his stomach drop. It was Hueningkai. He looked at Beomgyu with so much betrayal and fear he had to take a step back. 

Tears sprung up uninvited to his eyes. Before he had time to do anything, a dark shadowy figure appeared behind the human. 

He spoke before he even knew what he was doing, “Let him go!” He knew he sounded less than intimidating, “He has nothing to do with this!” 

The figure just laughed, finally coming partially out of the shadows. One half of his disfigured face illuminated in the low lighting, “He has everything to do with this...” 

He pulled Kai backwards by the chain around his neck causing him to gasp in pain and splutter for air. 

“Why!?” Beomgyu was feeling increasingly desperate. Why was he so useless ?

“They all do,” The figure bared his teeth, “I will not let you fulfill the prophecy!” He was yelling now, spit flying. 

Beomgyu felt tears falling down his cheeks, “What prophecy!?” He was yelling now too, feeling increasingly desperate, “I don’t even know what you’re talking about!” 

The figure didn’t seem interested in answering anything Beomgyu had to say, “I will find you little mystic,” he began to walk away. Everything started to fade. 

Beomgyu started towards Hueningkai.

“Beomgyu-Hyung!” 

“Kai-ah!!” 

The world faded black. 

He heard a voice. One he didn’t recognise at first. After a moment. Yeonjun? 

“I can’t believe you let this happen” He was angry. 

  
  


+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

He woke up all at once. The sun was shining through his window, barely yet rising over the horizon. He let out a heavy breath, feeling a tear run down his face. Beomgyu was covered in sweat, and when he tried to get up to walk to his bathroom he had to hold onto his nightstand for support. 

Beomgyu looked awful. He could tell that much right away when he met his own gaze in the mirror. For a moment the idea of just packing up everything and going far, far away crosses his mind. He considers it, he really does. His mind weighs out the pros and cons. If he just went off the grid, where no one would ever find him for maybe a couple of centuries. Maybe then no one would get hurt. 

The sound of Hueningkai’s screams reverberated in his mind, causing him to slam his eyes closed in an attempt to block the horrible sound. Why was this happening? Why was it that everywhere he went death and destruction followed. 

Beomgyu felt himself begin to cry proper now. Tears running in streams down his face. He felt frustrated. What right did he have to cry? He was the cause of this mess anyway. Why had he even thought it was a good idea to come back to Seoul? 

He slammed his fist down on his bathroom counter once, feeling the pain run through his arm. He did it again and again, until he was numb up to his elbows. Beomgyu was breathing heavily now, rough sobs tearing out of his throat. It hurt. Everything hurt now. He let himself sink down to the floor. 

He put his head in his hands. He yelled. He yelled for Hueningkai, for himself. He yelled because he felt so lost and useless. He yelled for his parents and his people. He yelled because he truly was alone. He yelled until he couldn’t anymore. Not really caring if the neighbors heard. 

He wasn’t sure how long he just sat there. Beomgyu felt out of breath, out of tears. He felt rung out and empty. Eventually he pushed himself up off the floor, purposely avoiding looking at his own reflection in the mirror. He shuffled back to his bed, even though he knew that sleep would betray him. 

He collapsed face first, not really interested in doing anything else for the rest of the day. 

Beomgyu feels his phone vibrate somewhere nearby, he begins to reach out haphazardly without really looking up. After a second or two of halfhearted searching he huffs, realising it's not in his bed. He sticks his head up, searching with a little more purpose after hearing it buzz again. 

He finally finds the device under his bed. God only knows how it got there. He sighs, feeling a spark of apprehension tug in his chest when he sees who the message is from. Beomgyu unlocks the phone with reluctance.

_ Hueningkai-ah: Hyung! Are you free tomorrow for lunch? I want you to meet Soobin-Hyung!! _

_ Hueningkai-ah: and don’t worry, He wants to meet you too~ ;) _

His fingers hovered over the keys, unsure how to respond. He knew he should refuse. Actually he knew he should probably toss his phone out the window and move to a far off country. But deep down he knew he couldn’t. In his heart of hearts he was selfish. He wanted to stay, to feel normal. He wanted to have a friend. And if he left, and something bad still happened to Kai? How would he ever get over that? 

It was a weak justification and he knew it, but it was enough to spur him to type a response. 

_ Beomgyu-Hyung: Yea i’m free tomorrow. Where are we going for lunch?  _

He felt disgusted with himself immediately after he pressed send. Why was he purposely putting Kai, and now his friend, in danger. It was because deep down he knew he was selfish. Beomgyu felt tears threaten to spill once again. 

He didn’t let himself cry. He didn’t want to anymore. He put his phone down, turning his attention to the cardboard box of books on his floor. Okay, so when he and Hueningkai had been unpacking he had lied. Those books had belonged to his parents, but he knew exactly where they came from and what they said. 

They were a collection of ancient spell books and magic history that any museum would probably pay millions for. But Beomgyu had more use for them. Most humans nowadays couldn’t even read them, as they were written in the language of his people, Arcane Runes. 

He readily dug through the box, quickly finding the book in question. The cover read,  _ “Uncoding Ancient Prophecies”  _

Beomgyu opened the cover with grim resolve. If he was going to stay, he had to get to the bottom of these weird visions. Because he knew, if he let anything happen to Kai, he would never forgive himself. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: Yeonjun is sus of Beomgyu. Beomgyu learns more about the Prophecy. Kai, Soobin, and Beom have lunch.


	5. Stardust, You and I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeonjun and Taehyun find something. Beomgyu and Soobin meet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo s/o to you who is leaving a comment on every chapter, You give me life and are the only reason I got up and wrote today. This chapter is for you.

“Hyung, I’m starting to think this is getting a bit obsessive” Taehyun sighed, shifting his weight for the millionth time in the uncomfortable public library chair. 

Yeonjun acknowledged his comment with a grunt, only serving to frustrate him further. 

Taehyun had had about enough of being left in the dark, “Yeonjun-Hyung, why the hell did you bring me with you if you aren’t going to explain what we’re looking for?” 

Yeonjun had, quite abruptly, demanded that he and Taehyun take an emergency trip to the Public University Library this afternoon after their shared psychology class. And Taehyun, to his credit, had gone along with it for a while, but after an hour of sitting and watching the older frustratedly look through old books and newspaper clipping he had to know what was going on. 

Yeonjun looked up. He had a determined, yet wildly frustrated look in his eyes, “Tae, I have a really bad feeling about Beomgyu-ah” 

Taehyun quirked his head to the side. Well, he wasn’t expecting that. “What, you mean Hueningkai’s new friend?” 

Yeonjun nodded, “It’s really bad, I can’t shake it. It’s not like any feeling i’ve ever had.” 

Taehyun felt intrigued for a moment and then annoyed all over again, “You mean all of this is because you can’t handle it when Hueningkai makes friends?” This was ridiculous. He shifted in the chair again. It certainly wasn’t worth all this crap. 

Yeonjun huffed, “No.” He turned away, reminiscent of a child, going back to what he was looking at. 

After a moment of slightly awkward silence, Taehyun finally conceded. 

“What are you even looking for in here anyway, Hyung?” he sighed. He really couldn’t believe he was humoring Yeonjun-hyung’s craziness. Anything to get out of this chair he guesses. 

Yeonjun looks up again, gesturing to the books. Taehyun can see now that they’re high school records, “Literally anything Tae-ah. Anything that will prove he’s a real person and not like a thirty year old creep. High School, College, job, I don’t care. Any mention and I’ll be satisfied.” 

Taehyun just let out a sigh. There he goes being all dramatic again. 

“Hyung, can I ask why you haven’t like googled him yet?” 

Yeonjun’s eyes widened, ears turning red, and it spreading quickly down his neck.

“I’ll do it.” Taehyun is quick to interrupt before he can even start on an excuse. 

He pulls his laptop out of his bag, opening it, and firing it up as the two friends settle back into quiet companionship. 

He starts first by googling his name. “Choi Beomgyu”. He isn’t too surprised when the search results don’t bring up anything substantial. If it was this easy then Yeonjun wouldn’t have dragged him along. 

He starts searching with school names in the area, he widens his search. Still nothing. He then begins going to specific school websites, searching for the name, then opts to just search through online yearbooks. Another hour of work still yields nothing, even a Facebook page with 56 different Choi Beomgyus to look through gives them nothing. 

Taehyun is starting to be convinced, maybe this guy really doesn’t exist. As he clicks out of his, what feels like, thousandth different school page. He still didn’t quite get Yeonjun’s paranoia though. To be fair, he had never met the guy, but he trusted Hueningkai’s judgement of character, and when had a lack of social media presence ever been something suspicious. 

This was getting old. His back hurt, and he was hungry. They hadn’t found one single thing in the two hours they had been here. 

Then Taehyun had an idea. He almost smacked himself. How had they not thought of that yet. Well, Yeonjun probably still wouldn’t have considered googling yet, but he was disappointed in himself that he hadn’t figured it out sooner. 

“Hyung?”

“Hmm?” Yeonjun looked up, he had been hunched over, deep in thought over some foreign school’s yearbook. 

“Do you have a picture of this guy?” Yeonjun averted his eyes a bit too quickly. 

“No, why would I have that? That’s creepy Taehyun-ah” 

He just rolled his eyes, everything had to be difficult. “You do, don’t you?” 

“No…” Yeonjun didn’t sound too confident. 

“Well, that’s really a bummer, cause I was thinking that we could probably just reverse image search his face… but since you don’t have anything…” 

He took the bait, “Well, I may have something.” He reached sheepishly for his phone, “You know, that Hyuka has sent me.” 

“Mhmm…” In truth Taehyun really didn’t care where Yeonjun got the photo from. He just wanted to do the search, find something, then make Yeonjun pay for his lunch. 

He heard a text notification, “I sent it to you” Yeonjun was avoiding eye contact. 

Taehyun just sighed, exasperated. Whatever. 

He pulled up the photo, quickly putting it into the appropriate software. His hyung had abandoned his previous reading material in favor of leaning annoyingly close over Taehyun’s shoulder. Taehyun did his best not to elbow him in the ribs when he breathed literally right down his neck. 

The search loaded, and for a second, Taehyun really thought there might be nothing. And then, what? 

“What is that?” 

“I have no idea…” 

Both boys looked dumbfounded at the computer screen. How was that possible? But it had to be? Right? Taehyun blinked and got closer to the screen, and yep, unmistakable. That was the same Beomgyu from the picture. 

There was only one result. It was an image taken from an old newspaper clipping. A newspaper from 1875. The photo was in black and white, and featured Beomgyu front and center. He was standing with a group of protesters, holding a sign over his head that read:  _ “Magic is your friend! Stop the Violence! Liberate Magic!”  _

“It has to be a coincidence right?” Yeonjun didn’t sound as enthusiastic anymore, or even frustrated. Just confused. 

Taehyun didn’t respond, opting instead to just expand the file in hopes of seeing the rest of the article. Both boys were stunned into silence once again when it turned out that the newspaper was written entirely in Russian. 

Taehyun blinked, “What the hell?” 

“Is there any way to translate that?” Yeonjun had gotten very close to his ear once again. 

Taehyun pushed him back until he sat back in his own chair, “I don’t know” He fiddled with the program a bit, eventually finding the ‘translate page’ option. 

“There!” 

It took a moment to load, both of them on the edge of their seats. Taehyun’s previous hunger and discomfort were momentarily forgotten. 

The Headline read: “Magic Liberation Riots Continue till Early Morning in Moscow” 

Taehyun skimmed the rest of the article, not getting much from the broken Korean. His gaze landed on the caption under the photo. 

“Unnamed protester marches moments before the riots grow violent” 

He grimaces, Yeonjun lets out a sound of disappointment. He must have seen it too. There was no name credited under the photo. Taehyun wasn’t sure exactly what he expected, the paper was over two centuries old. 

He sat back in the chair, feeling slightly deflated. He looked at Yeonjun. That boy definitely owed him food after putting up with all this. 

“It’s gotta be a coincidence, Hyung. Maybe a distant relative or something…” He hoped he didn’t sound as lame as he felt saying that. 

Yeonjun leaned back too, an unreadable look came over his features, “I guess you’re right… “ 

He got that look on his face again. Ugh... What now? Taehyun couldn’t help but feel annoyed. 

“Do you think you could print me a copy of that?” 

“The Korean one?” 

“How about one of each” 

Taehyun felt like slamming his head against the desk. He refrained. Now Yeonjun owed him lunch and a back massage. 

  
  


+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

  
  


Beomgyu hadn’t had any luck so far. He was pretty sure he had read every book that he owned, some more than once, and he still didn’t know anything more about this prophecy. Sure, he knew lots, probably more than he ever wanted to, about prophecies in general. All of his books just went over history, and magical theory. He wasn’t getting anywhere on the internet either. 

To be honest, he really hadn’t expected to. People who are actual magic users and knew anything about a terrible prophecy that involved a seer probably wouldn’t go blabbing about it online. Well, any smart ones wouldn’t. That’s why Beomgyu had held on to a little bit of hope when he began his online search. The world was full of stupid people.   
The only thing of substance he had learned so far in his research was this: The largest archive of magical books and records was located here in Seoul. Within those archives there were thousands and thousands of recorded prophecies. So, if his prophecy was anywhere, it had to be there. 

There was only one problem. The archives were completely closed off to the public. Only available to those with high enough clearance or to college students majoring in magical history from some of the nearby universities, with strict supervision of course. 

He had hit a wall. Either try to break into one of the most highly secured libraries in the entire country without really a clear idea of what he was looking for, or give up. Beomgyu felt like giving up, if he was honest. These last few centuries had been particularly rough to him. He wasn’t the same person he was back then. 

He put his head back, looking up at the ceiling. Damn. He knew he couldn’t. He couldn’t just let this go. Beomgyu didn’t usually feel this strongly about things, but this he was sure of. He would get to the bottom of this prophecy, figure out what this weird shadow dude’s problem was, and make sure nothing bad happened to Hueningkai or any of his friends. 

He clenched his fist, letting out a shaky breath. 

_ ‘I guess I’m breaking into a government facility,’ _ He mused. The idea was almost laughable. But he knew life wasn’t just going to hand him this one. If you can’t catch a break, sometimes you gotta go in and take it for yourself. 

At that point his phone buzzed… from somewhere. He really needed to keep a better track of that thing. 

_ Hueningkai-ah: See you soon hyung!!! ;))~ _

Shit! Was that really the time? He was going to be late! Beomgyu scrambled around his apartment. It was significantly less clean than when Hueningkai had been over to help him. 

Books were strewn, not just around his bedroom, but scattered all around his home. One of his walls had now been dedicated to hold all his findings about the prophecy. There were papers on the floor and countertops holding as close as possible accounts of his recent visions and dreams. Beomgyu was sure he looked like a lunatic, but no one was really there to judge him, so it wasn’t a big deal. 

He finally located all the necessary belongings needed to leave for the day. Taking one more look over his space. Resolving to make more progress once he got home. With that he left, nerves just now starting up when he remembered that he was meeting one of Hueningkai’s friends today. 

After a short text conversation with Kai yesterday, they had decided to eat at a small local sushi place that wasn’t too far from campus or Beomgyu’s apartment. He ran his hands over the wrinkles in his shirt. He hoped he looked okay. He really hadn’t thought about first impressions in a few centuries, so don’t blame him if he’s a bit rusty. 

Beomgyu rounded the last corner to the restaurant, quickly spotting Hueningkai’s tall figure. He faltered for a second, getting his first look at Soobin-hyung. He had blue hair? Beomgyu felt something spark deep down somewhere inside himself before it quickly dissipated. The last time he had seen someone with blue hair had been a mage. She had been burned at the stake. 

Of course Soobin didn’t have magic. Colorful hair was a thing humans did now. Beomgyu remembered reading about that online. In recent decades, dying one's hair had become a form of rebellion, because it was reminiscent of something that people with magic could do. Soobin-hyung must have dyed his hair that color on purpose. 

Maybe they’d get along better than he thought. Beomgyu smiled to himself, feeling comfortable now to approach the pair. This was going to be perfectly fine. 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

“Is that him?” Soobin pointed across the street for the fifth time. Hueningkai deflated, not allowing himself to be annoyed with his hyung. He knew that Soobin was just channeling his nervous energy. He wished though he could find a less disruptive activity. 

“No Hyung, That’s not him” Kai put down his phone, scanning the street and sidewalk for himself. Beomgyu wasn’t late per say, it was just that he and Soobin had gotten there super early. Beomgyu actually had a little more than 7 minutes before their designated meeting time to arrive. 

The minutes passed slower than normal. Soobin had begun to fidget with his zipper, which Kai guessed was better than pointing to every young man on the street. 

“It’s going to be fine, Hyung,” Hueningkai reached out to put a hand over the one Soobin had been using to tug on the zipper, “I don’t think anyone could not like you.” 

Soobin laughed lightly. Kai would count that as a win, “I’m pretty sure that’s you Hyuka” 

He smiled in response, “Then it can’t possibly go bad, If we got the both of us!” 

Soobin just shook his head, the beginnings of a grin reaching his mouth. Then his eyes darted to something behind Hueningkai. 

Kai turned following his gaze, and there he was Choi Beomgyu in all of his glory. He was approaching them at a quick pace, he smiled and waved when they made eye contact. 

Kai waved back, “Beomgyu-Hyung!” He greeted the smaller boy with a tight hug, which the other seemed to sink into. When they parted, Beomgyu quickly turned to offer Soobin his hand to shake. 

“It’s nice to meet you Soobin-Hyung,” Beomgyu’s voice was quiet, but still earnest, “I’ve heard alot about you.” 

Beomgyu was the shortest of the three. That wasn’t really a surprise, seeing as both Hueningkai and Soobin were giants. Soobin hoped the boy wasn’t too intimidated. Or maybe he did, a little bit of him hoped the other was as nervous as him. This thought only really served to calm his own nerves slightly.

“It’s nice to meet you too Beomgyu-ah” He shook the boy’s hand, smiling in a way he hoped was friendly. 

Kai stepped in, “Should we go in?” He gestured and started making his way towards the door, “I’m starving!” 

The other two were quick to follow. After they got seated, conversation flowed easily. Soobin wonders now why he was so worried. Hueningkai was here, and he was awesome at keeping the conversation alive. And Beomgyu, to his credit, was trying too. It was easy to tell that the kid was nowhere near as extroverted as Hueningkai, but the longer they all sat together the louder and more confident he became. 

Beomgyu was a really nice kid, a bit weird, but nice all the same. Soobin could tell why Hueningkai liked him so much. He could feel himself growing endeared to him as well. 

Soon conversation began to turn from small talk, to more personal topics. 

“So Beomgyu-ah, are you in college?” 

The boy blushed a little, hand running through his hair, “ah, no. I’ve been taking a year off.” This was a well rehearsed lie. Beomgyu had pretty much come up with a response for everything they could possibly ask him. “I’ve been thinking of enrolling soon though, maybe at semester. Magic History is really interesting to me.” 

Just a stretch of the truth. He liked to imagine that if he was a real human, that maybe this is the life he would be living right now. 

“Oh really!” Soobin’s eyes lit up, “I’m a Magic History major right now!” 

Beomgyu perked up at that, “Really? That’s so cool Hyung! 

Soobin just blushed at the praise, but continued on the conversation with excitement, “It is, most of the time,” He smiled, putting on a joking tone, “Writing your final project for your junior year is an absolute pain. I'll tell you that.” He leaned back for effect. 

“It’s true,” Hueningkai commented, “You’ve been working on that thing like all semester.” 

“What are you writing about?” Beomgyu couldn’t help himself. It had been so long since he had been able to even slightly discuss anything magical. 

“Well, for this project, we have to do a bunch of our own research on a magical concept or theory and write a giant paper on it.” He scrunched up his nose, “The research part was fun, the writing, not so much” 

“So what did you research?” Beomgyu didn’t mean to be nosy, and he realised a second too late, that maybe Soobin had been avoiding the topic.

He didn’t need to worry though, because Soobin seemed happy to oblige. Hueningkai listened with rapt attention.

“Well,” Soobin started a little nervous, “I have a little bit of a more liberal view on magic than some,” Beomgyu knew he would like this guy, “and so I’ve been doing my research into how magical heritage is passed down.” 

Beomgyu was intrigued, he made a noise prompting Soobin to continue. 

“In my paper, well, I’m trying to support the idea that magic doesn't decrease in power between generations” Soobin’s ears were red, “That probably sounds crazy right. He smiled a bit sheepishly. 

Beomgyu was more curious, “If it doesn’t decrease what happens to it?” Soobin seemed to be surprised at his interest. 

“Ah, Well, in my research, I’ve found that it could be possible that people’s magic over generations has been suppressed. Like, over the years, as parents of children instilled that fear of magic it’s possible that those magic genes were passed down and just, well, suppressed” 

Beomgyu considered this. He didn’t really know much about the topic, but if that was true, that meant- 

“So you’re saying that the world is full of magic people who just don’t know it?” Hueningkai looked excited about the prospect. 

“I mean, possibly. There is research from around the world that supports the idea that magical genes, when passed down, don’t lose any of their potency. They could just be harder to unlock” 

Beomgyu was sure he had a look of shock on his face, “That’s so cool Hyung” 

Soobin blushed, “It’s not really that big of a deal,” 

“No really! That’s so interesting” Beomgyu’s eyes shone with excitement. Soobin thought he could see something more behind them. Some emotion he couldn’t decipher. 

“You really would be a good fit for the Magic History program” He laughed, this kid was weird. But a good kind of weird. 

Soobin had an idea, “Hey, Beomgyu-ah, you should come with me sometime to the magical archives. You’d love it there.” 

Beomgyu was floored. Maybe life was just going to hand him this one. 

“I’d love to!” His smile was blinding, practically bouncing in his seat, “Thank you so much Soobin-Hyung!” 

Hueningkai laughed, smiling at his two friends, “I can’t believe it,” He mocked in a teasing tone, “I introduce you two, and then you make plans right in front of me” 

Soobin teased right back, “Sorry Hyuka, I’m only allowed one guest… and well, I like Beomgyu more than you.” 

Hueningkai feigned offense, dramatically throwing both hands over his heart, “Betrayal to the highest degree!” 

Beomgyu just giggled watching their antics. He felt light, this was the best he had felt in centuries. He felt so happy. 

If only this moment could last forever. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: Soobin and Beomgyu visit the archives


	6. Haunted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kai is followed, Beomgyu and Soobin go to the archives

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter had a mind of its own and is nothing like the sneak peak I gave last chapter... Whoops

_Soobin-Hyung: Hey Beomgyu-ah, I got an assignment today that requires me to visit the archives. If you're interested I can fill out a visitors pass for you and we can go tomorrow around 9._

When Soobin had offered to take him to the archives, Beomgyu was expecting it to take a week, maybe a couple. He definitely wasn’t expecting for it to be three days later. Of course, Beomgyu wouldn’t turn down an opportunity when it presented itself, especially since his own research is getting him frustratingly nowhere. 

_Beomgyu-ah: I’m interested! Thank you so much Hyung! See you then!!_

_Soobin-Hyung: No Problem, See you soon. :)_

Beomgyu didn’t even try to hold in the happy dance he felt at the excitement for tomorrow. As much as his visit to the archives was a mission to get to the bottom of the prophecy and the shadow man, it was also a special moment for him. It would be the first time in centuries when he would get to be in a magical space. 

It was difficult to describe, the feeling of being in the presence of magic. To Beomgyu it had always been sacred. He still had cherished memories of his parents taking him to the temple all those years ago. Of course magic was a little bit in everything. It flowed throughout the earth, but as the years pass by it gets harder and harder to feel. 

Magic is residual in some ways. Spaces where magic has been cast, or great amounts of magic has resided will hold onto that feeling for some time to come. Magic had echos, if you will. Beomgyu was sure that everywhere he went, his magic echoed behind him. Only those with a trained eye and ear, usually a magic user themselves, could feel it. Those echoes were hard to come by now. 

That’s why he was so excited to go to the archives. He just knew by reading about the place online that it was going to have a major magical echo. It would probably be more like a resounding bell. With all the magical artifacts, ancient texts, and powerful conduits held there it had to have an extremely potent footprint. He just hoped it wouldn’t be too overwhelming. 

He felt his own magic surge just beneath his skin. That was weird. If Beomgyu had done anything in his years alone, it was to learn how to be in complete control of his magic. Well, as in control you could be with something like this. Magic wasn’t just a tool. That’s what made it so dangerous. He presumed that’s why humans were so afraid of it.

Unlike a sword, which at the end of the day was just a piece of sharp metal, Magic was an extension of oneself. It was alive and active. Just as much a part of you as your beating heart or your hands and feet. It was difficult to turn off and impossible to get rid of. He had come to terms with that truth long ago. He had spent many times wishing for a way out. 

Sometimes he had considered what it would be like, if he wasn’t immortal. To be honest, Beomgyu didn’t like that word. In his opinion, it gave people the wrong idea about seers. He could die. If he really wanted to, he could give himself a mortal wound and that would do it. The only thing that couldn’t harm him is age. Seers didn’t age. They were timeless beings, said to say young and beautiful forever. They were like unwithering flowers, but that did not leave them impervious to other forms of harm.

Beomgyu’s stomach groaned. He sighed, being immortal also didn’t save him from needing proper food and rest either. It could really be a pain sometimes. 

He got up, heading to his small kitchen with the intention to scrounge up something hopefully edible from whatever he could find his fridge. Beomgyu only got about half way there before he could hear his phone ringing from back in the bedroom. He let out another laboring sigh, quickly rerouting back to where he had come from. 

He reached the phone, fully expecting to be an unknown number, most likely spam. It turned out to be Hueningkai. This caused a smile to creep up his face. Kai didn’t typically call him, especially this late at night. The smile went as fast as it came. He picked up, putting the device to his ear. He made his way back to the kitchen, pacing the small space waiting for the call to connect.

The first thing he hears over the line is heavy breathing, and then Kai. 

“Hyung?” His voice is hushed, he sounds scared. 

“What's wrong Kai-ah?” Beomgyu’s pacing extends into his living room as well. Listening to his dongsaeng puff on the other end of the line.

Kai lets out what sounds like a relieved sigh at the sound of his voice, “Hyung, I-I think someone’s following me” 

That makes all the air leave Beomgyu’s lungs in an instant, thoughts immediately going to his visions and Kai screaming for help. He shakes his head to clear it. He needs to stay calm. 

“Just stay on the line with me, please.” Kai sounds like he’s walking faster now. 

“O-of course,” He hopes he sounds calm and reassuring, but he’s pretty sure he sounds as shaky as he feels, “Where are you now, Hueningkai-ah?” 

“I’m just on my way back to my dorm, maybe like a block or two away…” Kai trails off, and Beomgyu’s magic starts going haywire. It feels almost like he’s about to have a vision. Now is really not the time. He does his best to smash the feeling down. It’s slightly painful, but he grits his teeth and forces it anyway. 

“What’s happening now?” If Beomgyu sounds strained on the call, Hueningkai didn’t seem to notice. 

“Wh-..uh.. I can see the guy kinda,” Kai is whispering and breathing heavily directly into the phone microphone, “It’s too dark, I can’t really see him well, but his face is all messed up” 

The figure from his dream quickly flashes behind Beomgyu’s eyes. Making him gasp quietly and stop pacing momentarily. 

“Hueningkai-ah, you gotta get out of there-” 

“I know, I know-” 

Kai gasps and there's static and the phone hits something. Beomgyu can hear panting and feet hitting pavement. 

“What Happened,” No response, “Kai!” He’s yelling now, “What happened!!” 

Beomgyu feels his magic tingling under his skin. It’s still setting off alarm bells like crazy. Everything feels too loud. He needs Kai to respond. 

He hears over the phone the sound of a door opening and slamming. Finally after what felt like an eternity Hueningkai’s voice is heard over the phone. 

“I made it home,” He’s winded, presumably from running the rest of the way to his dorm. 

Beomgyu releases a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, “What the hell happened??” He ran his hand through his hair, stress induced pacing resumed. 

“I don’t really know,” Kai sounds better now, talking at full volume, but still noticeably shaken up, “I just like, looked behind me to look at the guy and he was right there…. I didn’t even hear him. It scared the crap out of me.” Kai gave a nervous chuckle. 

Beomgyu had no idea how he could even laugh after what happened. Probably because Kai didn’t have all the disturbing visions for context in how terrible this situation was.

“Make sure you lock all your doors tonight Kai-ah” Beomgyu couldn’t stop himself. He needed to know that he was okay. 

Kai just gives another chuckle, “I will,” He responds with sincerity and Beomgyu hears shuffling over the line that he can only assume is Hueningkai taking his advice. 

“Thank you, Beomgyu-hyung,” Kai sniffs, a little awkwardly after everything that had just transpired, “Thanks for y'know… picking up…” 

“Of course Kai.” He knew it was cheesy, but he meant it, “You can call me anytime.” 

He hears Kai giggle, “I know Hyungie!” Beomgyu could almost hear the smile in his voice. 

Kai had no idea how much he meant those words. He would do anything to protect him. To protect that smile. 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

Beomgyu has no idea how he even got to bed that night. As the sun barely peaked over the horizon he shifted, gazing up at his ceiling. He and Hueningkai had stayed on the phone for another half an hour after his encounter. Half for Kai because he was still feeling unsettled and half for himself. Even when they had gone to hang up Beomgyu had felt the urge to never let him go. 

Now that the morning has come he’s feeling drained. His limbs feel heavy as he splashes cold water on his face. Beomgyu knows he needs to clear his head. Especially after everything that went down last night, it was more important than ever for him to get to the bottom of the prophecy. 

He got ready quickly, not wanting to linger too much, knowing that if he let his mind drift too much it would go straight back to his worries. Beomgyu really needed to get his head in the game. He smacked his face lightly before he walked out the door, hoping the sting would ground him. 

The archives were housed in a ginormous building a little bit off the main campus of the university that his friends attended. The place was probably five stories, Beomgyu would guess just by looking. It was an impressive sight. The architecture was modern, not really his taste, but it was still beautiful nonetheless. 

He stood looking in awe, the magic radiating off the building was strong. He could feel it even from where he stood on the sidewalk outside. His fingers are itching to get inside and get his hands on these books. His magic surged forward, almost a driving force as he approached. 

He spotted Soobin first, he was waiting for him while on his phone, leaning against a nearby light pole. Beomgyu made his approach known. 

“Soobin-hyung!” 

He started, Beomgyu felt kinda bad, but Soobin recovered quickly, as if nothing had even happened. 

“Hey, Beomgyu-ah!,” He smiled, dimple showing itself, “I’m glad you could make it!” 

Beomgyu returned the smile readily, trying not to look too overly excited, “Me too! Thank you so much again for inviting me Hyung, I really appreciate the opportunity.” 

“Ah it’s no problem really,” He scratched his neck, slightly embarrassed. Quick to change the subject, “Here’s your visitor badge…” 

Soobin pulled out a lanyard, handing it to Beomgyu who quickly placed it around his neck. 

“Just a few things before we go in,” Beomgyu listened with rapt attention, feeling slightly like a youngling again, getting told rules and being talked down to by an ‘elder’. 

“Make sure you stay with me at all times, It’s really big in there and I don’t want you to get lost,” He smiled, Beomgyu wondered if he had had that issue before, “Always keep your badge on so that security will know your allowed to be in there,” He noticed the almost identical lanyard hanging from Soobin’s own neck, but instead of visitor, it read ‘student. 

“Lastly, just please don’t break anything,” Beomgyu was sure by the tone of his voice that Soobin had dealt with this one before.

He nodded his understanding, giving his biggest smile, “I won’t hyung.” 

Soobin just smiled back, sighing and turning towards the entrance, “Let’s go in then and get started, we don’t have all day.” 

When Beomgyu’s foot crosses the threshold his magic grows restless. If he thought the feeling was strong from outside, it was practically overwhelming now. It made him stop short. Soobin looks back, seemingly interpreting the look on his face as awe. 

“Pretty cool, huh?” 

It’s all Beomgyu can do to just nod mutley, forcing his legs to continue moving forward. After giving himself a minute to adjust and let his magic calm down, he is able to truly appreciate the magic of the space. The magic housed in the archives isn’t just strong, it is also ancient. It is powerful, and still very much active. Where a normal human may just see shelves of old books, he can feel the magic flowing through this place, whispering in his ears and ruffling his hair. 

“So, where do they keep all the prophecies in here?” Beomgyu did his best to sound natural. 

Soobin gave him a confused look, “I didn’t take you for the superstitious type…” 

Beomgyu almost snorted. Superstitious? He wishes. 

“They just interest me, that's all,” He puts on a pouty voice, hoping Soobin won't think too hard about his interest.

Soobin shrugs, chuckles a bit, and reaches to sling an arm over his shoulder. Beomgyu thanks God that he’s easy going. 

“Okay Okay, There's a whole bunch of em back there,” He gestures vaguely with his free arm towards the back of the giant library, “You might have some trouble with those though,” He sighs when Beomgyu looks up at him worriedly. 

“Most of the prophecies they have archived here are written in Ancient Runes,” Soobin huffs, there's probably a deeper story here that Beomgyu is missing, “Horrible language really, It’s like impossible to translate…” 

And there it is. Beomgyu considers his options for a second. How can he do this without raising too much suspicion. He considers his next words carefully.

“I actually know some Runes…” 

Soobin looks incredulous, “Really?” 

Beomgyu nods, “Yea, my parents taught it to me,” Not really a lie, just a stretch of the truth. 

“Wow,” Soobin looks at him with something akin to respect, “Were they like magical historians or…” 

“Something like that…” Beomgyu looks off wistfully. The thought of his parents used to make him misty eyed, but he’d had more than enough time to move on now. 

Soobin looked like he was going to push the subject, but it seemed they reached the section he had been looking for. Beomgyu felt relieved at the change in topic. 

“This is the magical history section, from the years…” He looked around, finding the plaque on the end of the book shelf and gesturing to it, “1300-1400” 

Beomgyu felt slightly awkward standing in the middle of books telling stories of things he had experienced, “So the fall of the golden age then?” 

“Mhmm” Soobin had already begun looking for books. 

“If you don’t mind me asking,” He watched as Soobin turned to look at him after pulling out a particular volume, “What are you researching.” 

“Well, it’s for an assignment in one of my classes,” he went back to looking through the shelves, but continued talking, “We’re discussing the Great Purge right now, so I came to get the account of Prince Alderman Tam. We have to write like a historical critique or something like that.” 

Beomgyu’s blood ran cold. This was his family. The Great Purge. The time when the golden age had ended. The four human kingdoms had banded together to attack the Seer capital of Delphi completely unprovoked. They slaughtered almost all who were there, sending all other magic beings into hiding. This gruesome assault was also the beginnings of the Massacres. When governments all around the world began to follow suit and attack or push their magical population into hiding.

“Beomgyu?” 

His spiraling thoughts were broken by Soobin, he had an eyebrow raised. 

“I just don’t really think that he’s a very good account…” He could barely hold back the emotion from his voice. 

Soobin looked even more confused, “Who? Tam?” 

He shook his head yes, not yet trusting his mouth. 

“Well, I mean I guess there’s a bias there, but I mean Alderman Tam has one of the only full accounts of that day, so it’s better than nothing I guess” Soobin shrugged, he didn’t seem to be pressed about the issue. 

“Its a bad account. I’ve read it.” He took a steadying breath, reminding himself not to say anything incriminating to Soobin, “He was the son of the King who ordered the genocide and He was nine when it happened, h-how well could he even remember it… also he was a human, not a Seer. Of course there’s a bias there. He probably feared magic like everyone in that era. A-and there’s no alternate account of those events. Why? Because they were all brutally murdered or driven into obscurity-” 

He had to stop himself. He was getting too angry, too personal. 

Soobin was looking at him wide-eyed. Mouth opening and closing a few times before finally responding. 

“Well, I guess that’s fair,” He spoke slowly, like talking to a scared puppy, “I’ve never really considered it like that…” Soobin looked at him thoughtfully before putting a comforting hand on Beomgyu’s shoulder, “I’ve always just been taught from this one account, no one really talks about how it could be wrong…” 

Beomgyu knew that Soobin was trying to soothe him. He was so courteous of other people's feelings. Beomgyu started to feel bad for getting so worked up. 

“Sorry Hyung,” Soobin looked at him with understanding, “I guess this topic is just something I feel passionate about.” 

Soobin just gave him a reassuring smile, squeezing his shoulder, “I get it, Beomgyu-ah. You should never get me started on the ethics of modern enchantments in marketing… I’ll never shut up” 

This got a small laugh out of the shorter. Soobin would count that as a win. 

“I guess we all have little things that we are passionate about for no reason.” 

Soobin agreed outwardly, smiling encouragement to his dongsaeng. On the inside though, he couldn’t help but wonder. There had to be something more there. People just didn’t get that worked up about things that happened ages ago. Soobin knew something didn’t quite add up, but he just had no clue how to even approach the topic with him.

So he didn’t. He let the topic go for now, instead grabbing the book he had come for and guiding Beomgyu out of the aisle. 

“Let’s go to the prophecies” 

Beomgyu was quieter now, the same excitement and energy that had been radiating off him when they had entered had by now diminished. Soobin didn’t like that at all. He knew Beomgyu wasn’t like Hueningkai in the way he was a walking sunshine, but Beomgyu was his own kind of energizer. He was like a battery, Soobin presumes he just has run out of steam a little bit. 

Although he perks up quite a bit when Soobin announces that they have arrived in the Prophecy section of the archives. 

“I’m gonna go sit at that table right over there and get started on my project,” He pointed to a table near the end of the row near the wall, still close enough to see and hear everything, “You can search to your heart's content.” 

Beomgyu seems even happier after that, setting off towards the nearest shelf with an unfounded determination. Soobin just chuckles to himself as he gets settled at the table, this kid was weird. Like very weird, odd, strange, all of the above, but he couldn’t help but admire him. 

He almost looked like he was shining in the light of the midmorning sun that was peeking through the windows. His hair had fallen down into his eyes as he studied the cover of a book, making Soobin have the urge to go over and push it behind his ear. 

He wishes he could understand Beomgyu. There’s something about him that is just magnetic that Soobin can’t quite describe. He wishes he could protect the boy and know all his secrets. Soobin knows that Beomgyu is hiding something, he’s not stupid. That much is obvious. It’s like he is holding back his true self, never really willing to let go and be free. 

Soobin decides he doesn’t like that. He wants Beomgyu to feel relaxed around him. He would much rather see him smile. 

Soobin has to tear his eyes away from his staring when Beomgyu turns his way. He has a few different books in his hands, all pretty old looking. Soobin isn’t sure why he is surprised when all the covers have a title in a language he can’t decipher. 

“So you weren't kidding, you really can read that?” 

Beomgyu looks distractedly up at his Hyung, “Yea…” 

Soobin wants to push the topic, he really does. He wants to ask Bemgyu all sorts of personal questions and get to know the cute boy. But he doesn’t.

Soobin rationalizes to himself as the two sit in comfortable silence. ‘ _I don’t really know him that well yet.. I don’t want to scare him off’_

So Soobin stays quiet, for now. Letting the two of them work quietly, side by side. One of them occasionally asking something or pointing out something from their books. 

He takes a look at the boy when he knows Beomgyu isn’t looking. He can’t help but wonder… what’s going on inside his pretty little head. 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

ᛗᚨᚷᛁᚲ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᚱᛖᛏᚢᚱᚾ ᛏᛟ ᚦᛖ ᛖᚨᚱᚦ, ᛏᚺᛖ ᚾᛟᚱᚦ ᛊᛏᚨᚱ, ᚨᚱᛖᛚᚢᚲᛏᚨᚾᛏ ᛚᛖᚨᛞᛖᚱ, ᚺᛖ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛗᛟᚢᛖ ᛗᛟᚢᚾᛏᚨᛁᚾᛊ ᚨᚾᛞᛒᛖ ᚢᛁᚲᛏᛟᚱᛁᛟᚢᛊ ᛁᚾ ᛒᚨᛏᛏᛚᛖ.

ᛏᚺᛖ ᚷᚢᚨᚱᛞᛁᚨᚾ ᛗᚢᛊᛏ ᚱᛖᛗᛟᚢᛖ ᚺᛁᛊ ᚺᛖᛚᛗᛖᛏ, ᛗᚨᛁ ᚦᛖᚱᛁᚢᛖᚱ ᚱᛖᚾᛖᚹ ᛗᚨᚷᛁᚲ ᚠᛚᛟᚹᛁᛜ ᛒᚨᚲᚲ ᛏᛟ ᚦᛖ ᛈᛖᛟᛈᛚᛖ.

ᚹᚺᛖᚾ ᚦᛖ ᛊᚲᛁ ᛒᚱᛖᚨᚦᛊ ᛗᚨᚷᛁᚲ ᛟᚾᚲᛖ ᛗᛟᚱᛖ ᚦᛖ ᛗᚨᚾ ᛟᚠᚦᛖ ᛞᛟᚢᛒᛚᛖ ᛖᛞᚷᛖᛞ ᛊᚹᛟᚱᛞ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛒᛖ ᛊᛖᛏ ᚠᚱᛖᛖ.

ᚨᚾᛞ ᚹᚺᛖᚾ ᚦᛖ ᛁᚾᛏᛖᚱᚲᛖᛊᛊᛟᚱ ᚲᚱᛖᛖᛞᛊ, ᛚᛁᚲᛖ ᛗᛟᛟᚾᛟᚢᛖᚱ ᛊᚢᚾ ᛗᚨᚷᛁᚲ ᚨᚾᛖᚹ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᛒᛖ.

ᚹᚺᛖᚾ ᚢᚾᛚᛁᛏ ᛞᚨᛁ ᚺᛖᚱᚨᛚᛞᛊ ᚦᛖ ᚾᛖᚹ ᛞᚨᚹᚾ ᛟᚾ ᚦᛖ ᚹᛁᛜᛊᛟᚠ ᚦᛖ ᚠᛁᚠᚦ ᛚᛁᚷᚺᛏ, ᛗᚨᚷᛁᚲ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ ᚱᛖᛏᚢᚱᚾ ᛏᛟ ᚦᛖ ᛖᚨᚱᚦ.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: Group hangout, some magic unlocked ;)


	7. Lines That Burn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Group hang out, some stuff goes down. It's about to get interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a long one :) Lot's of angst to be had here ;p
> 
> TW: Car accidents, Hospitals

_ Hueningkai: are we still on for tonight?? :p _

_ Taehyun: As far as I know… _

_ Yeonjun: yes hyuka  _

_ Soobin 5 pm at  _ _ Seo Seo Galbi right off campus _

_ Hueningkai: :) :) :)  _

_ Hueningkai: i have a question~~~ don’t feel pressured either way… _

_ Hueningkai: i know these are our nights to hang out buuuutt..  _

_ Soobin: What is it?  _

_ Taehyun: Just ask already.  _

_ Hueningkai: okay okay :X _

_ Hueningkai: would you all be okay if  _

_ Hueningkai: i invited beomgyu-hyung??? _

_ Soobin: Sure! I’m okay with that! _

_ Hueningkai: ~YAY~ :PP _

_ Taehyun: That's fine with me. I’m interested to meet him :) _

_ Hueningkai: OKaY!!  _

_ Hueningkai: Yeonjun-Hyung…? _

_ Yeonjun: do whatever you want.  _

_ Hueningkai: THX HYUNG! <3 ;p _

  
  


+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

He had found something...at least he thinks he did. Beomgyu had spent the days following his trip to the archives with Soobin translating. The prophecy he had been looking for had been seriously buried. He knew why too. This prophecy declared the return of magic, an idea he was sure ancient kings didn’t take too kindly to. He was honestly surprised it had even survived this long. 

It probably remained alive solely by word of mouth. Some of his kind, some other hidden away magic users holding onto hope that one day it would be fulfilled. The actual prophecy itself had been archived by the famed historian Sabine Isolt. He had found it tucked away amongst her many volumes of recorded history. 

And he had been working tirelessly to perfectly translate and decipher a meaning behind the words. Beomgyu knew that prophecies were supposed to be vague and to understand them they needed to be decoded, but at this point it was getting ridiculous. He rubbed his eyes before looking back down at his piece of paper. 

“ _ Magic will return to the earth, the North Star, a reluctant leader. He will move mountains and be victorious in battle. _

_ The Guardian must remove his helmet, may the river renew, magic flowing back to the people. _

_ When the sky breaths magic once more the Man of the Double Edged Sword will be set free. _

_ And when the Intercessor creeds, like moon over sun magic anew will be. _

_ When unlit day heralds the new dawn on the wings of the Fifth Light, Magic will return to the earth.” _

It seemed like crazy talk to him. All this about the return of magic, battles, guardians, swords, and lights; It all seemed way over his head. Beomgyu was just one person. He closed his eyes again, resting his head in his hands. How on earth did he get wrapped up in all of this? How could this creepy shadow man think that this prophecy had anything to do with him? 

Quite honestly, the only reason he recognized it was because he had heard it before. Well, not all of it. When he had been looking through books in the archives the last line of this particular one had caught his eye. It had eluded him at first. Where had he heard that line before? And then it had hit him. His vision. The final line of this prophecy had been spoken to him in his vision. He had heard it when he touched Hueningkai. 

He didn’t want to believe it was true. He shuddered, turning his head towards the ceiling trying to avoid looking at the prophecy in front of him for just a moment. If he had heard part of the prophecy when getting a vision about Kai, it could only mean one thing. Hueningkai was in some way connected to the fulfillment of that prophecy.

He looked back at the paper forlornly. He needed a break. Beomgyu knew he had been looking at the prophecy for too long. The logical side of his brain was telling him that it was doing him no good to just sit and stare, but he couldn’t find it in himself to move. He even knew that he was probably hindering his own efforts, but the sluggishness of his brain from the couple of all nighters he has pulled recently was keeping him from acting on his knowledge. 

He turned his neck slowly to survey the room. He felt stiff. His home was trashed, really, if he thought it was bad before, it was way worse now. He took a moment to look down at himself as well. Taking in the stained t-shirt and the sweatpants he had owned for probably a decade too long. Beomgyu ran a hand through his hair. He really needed a shower. This was getting way out of hand. 

He felt frustration rise in the form of a choked sort of sob. He squeezed his eyes shut, not allowing any tears to fall. He couldn’t let himself become more useless than he already was. He had allowed himself to grow attached to these humans, but he wouldn’t allow himself to cry over them again. It seemed that his childhood training and education had been too far gone now. He had lost the sound control over his emotions he possessed as a child. Beomgyu knew that if his parents could see him now they would be disappointed in his current endeavors. 

Seers were supposed to be timeless beings. A flower that could never wither. He was supposed to be strong and stable, but with roots nowhere. These were the teachings of his people. They were supposed to be nomads, a counsel for the wise. He was never supposed to grow attached. How he had thrown it all away so easily. 

He raked a hand through his hair once again, stopping along the way to tug. The pain felt good, grounding back into reality. He knew he was a failure to his people. He knew he was inadequate at keeping up the traditions of the seers and holding onto his beliefs. He knew that this much was true, but Beomgyu also knew that he had a job to do now. He had a purpose here in Seoul.

He may have failed his heritage, but he could apologize later. Right now he had a prophecy to worry about, and a shadow man haunting his friend. His own attachment to Hueningkai scared him. Even the feeling of protectiveness and responsibility he felt about Soobin was slightly overwhelming. He had only met him once and he already felt willing to do anything. 

His head had started to swim at some point during his inner monologue, thoughts coming in more incoherent as the minutes went on. He really needed to take a break. 

Beomgyu felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Digging it out quickly. Thankful for the interruption of his own thoughts. After taking a few moments more than necessary to read and comprehend the message a smile broke out on his face. Maybe it went against everything he was taught as a child, but he really couldn’t resist Hueningkai. 

Looks like his break has arrived. 

+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+x+

Hueningkai checked his phone for the eight time in the last minute. It had only been ten since they were supposed to meet up, so maybe he had just gotten caught up in something. Soobin, Yeonjun, Taehyun and himself were all standing outside the designated meeting place for their hangout. So what, Beomgyu was a little late, Kai was just being paranoid that something had happened to him.

“Maybe we should just head inside” Yeonjun had been anxious to get going from the second he had arrived. Kai wasn’t sure what was up with him. I mean, he had only ever met Beomgyu once, but everytime he was brought up Yeonjun just got all mean and pouty. 

Kai shot his Hyung a glare that lacked its normal heat behind it. He was trying to play it off on the outside, act normal and joke around. But on the inside he felt worried. He had known Beomgyu the longest, and this was definitely out of character for him. He was always very polite, and in that same way, always showed up on time for scheduled meetings. 

Looking up from his phone one last time to scan the area he saw him. Beomgyu was jogging, looking embarrassed, but the sight of his Hyung was enough for him to let out a sigh of relief. 

“There he is.” Hueningkai looked over, Taehyun had beat him to point out the approaching figure. The other two looked up, Soobin smiling and waving and Yeomjun quickly occupying himself with his phone.

Taehyun couldn’t help but take a sharp breath when he first laid eyes on Beomgyu. He had really been crossing his fingers that Yeonjun was just exaggerating on how similar he looked to the photo. But, no. The boy that had been approaching their group and was now greeting Kai and Soobin with hugs was the spitting image of that newspaper. There was no denying they were identical. 

“I’m so sorry I’m late,” Taehyun is broken out of his thoughts by Beomgyu’s slightly breathless apology, “I got caught up in something and just completely lost track of time…” 

Hueningkai, always one to forgive easily, slung an arm around the shorter’s shoulder, “That’s okay Hyung,” He beamed, “We’re just glad you made it!” 

Taehyun felt Yeonjun tense beside him. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Of course this paranoid doofus was still pressed about something. 

“I think the only one you haven’t met is Taehyun,” He looked up at the mention of his name and saw Beomgyu offering his hand to shake. 

“It’s nice to meet you Taehyun-ah, I’ve heard alot about you.” He took the other’s hand, smiling. 

“It’s nice to meet you too.” 

The group turns to head inside the building, friendly chatter starting up right away as they get seated.

Taehyun decided right then that he liked Beomgyu. He had always considered himself the logical one in the group, not really one to be carried away by irrational thoughts. And in this case, he had no reason not to trust Hueningkai’s judgment of character. Sure, maybe the kid was a little naive, but the fact that he and Beomgyu had hung out alone on multiple occasions with no bad consequences really said something. Not only that, but Soobin-Hyung seemed to trust him as well. 

Sure, out of context the newspaper article was weird, he could admit that. But there had to be an explanation that he and Yeonjun were missing. Taehyun wasn’t one to just jump to conclusions, so don’t blame him for not immediately getting swept away into Yeonjun’s paranoia. 

It had to be some kind of crazy coincidence. Those things just happen, that's life. Maybe he just didn’t get it. He didn’t get any bad vibe off Beomgyu at all. If anything he thought he was a nice guy, albeit a bit quiet, he could understand why Hueningkai and Soobin were so endeared to him. 

He looks up to see the person in question looking at him from across the table. Actually they’re all looking at him. ‘ _ I guess I got a bit too lost in thought there’ _

“Sorry, What?” he must have played it off good enough because the rest of the table laughed good naturedly.

Kai jokingly put his hand on Teahyun’s forehead, “Did you get enough sleep last night hyung,” He voice was that of mock concern, “It’s not like you to space out.” 

Taehyun playfully slapped his hand away causing laughter to erupt again, “Yah! I’m fine!” 

Whatever conversation that had been happening before picked back up again, but Taehyun wasn’t all that interested. Beomgyu was still looking at him, his eyes were full of an innocent curiosity. When they made eye contact, he quickly averted his gaze, giving Taehyun a friendly smile before turning back into the main conversation.

Taehyun decided to do the same, but very quickly regretted his decision.

“Beomgyu-ah,” the boy perked up at being addressed directly, “Have you ever lived in Russia?” 

Both Soobin and Kai look confused at the seemingly random change of topic. Taehyun feels like banging his head against the table. That moron couldn’t be less subtle if he tried. 

Beomgyu himself looks put off by the question, “N-no….I’ve visited there,” The poor guy was stumbling to get the words out, “It w-was when I was just a kid though-” 

Yeonjun interrupts, sounding a little too aggressive to be normal small talk, “So you have family there then?” 

Hueningkai’s eyes go wide, he shares a look with Soobin, who is seated between Beomgyu and Yeonjun. He just shakes his head, he is just as confused as to what is going on. 

“N-Not that I know of,” Beomgyu’s hand is clenched in a tight fist, he looks even smaller, cowering in his seat from Yeonjun’s impromptu interrogation. 

Kai must see this too, because before Yeonjun has the chance to ask another question he cuts in, “Hyung, can I talk to you?” 

His voice is ice cold, lips pressed in a tight line. Taehyun didn’t know Hueningkai was even capable of making that face. 

Yeonjun’s expression is similar, shooting one last untrusting gaze in Beomgyu’s direction before standing up to follow Kai to the front of the restaurant to talk. 

Hueningkai waits until he knows they’re out of earshot from the table to speak. He looks at his hyung for a moment, hoping he would explain himself. Honestly, Kai isn’t sure what to make of this situation. He knew Yeonjun didn’t like Beomgyu very much, but he had just chalked that up to him being overprotective. This was a whole new territory. 

Kai didn’t know what to make of it. Questions about Russia and Yeonjun’s obvious aggression towards Beomgyu; what was he missing here? After a second of silence it was obvious that Yeonjun wasn’t going to talk without some prompting. Hueningkai took a steadying breath, he had never been very good with confrontation. He would always rather be the one to comfort afterwards. 

“What was that Hyung?” Yeonjun looks down, a little discouraged. He doesn’t seem to be too mad anymore. He looked more deflated than anything now that he was faced with the reality of his actions, “Have you lost your mind?” 

He was at a loss for words for a moment, before finally settling on an answer, “I just don’t trust him…” 

Kai couldn’t believe it, “Hyung, that explains nothing,” He wished that Yeonjun would look him in the eye, “What the hell was all that about Russia… help me understand.” He took a kinder route. Softening his voice, he truly wanted to understand, and he knew that yelling wouldn’t get him anywhere with Yeonjun. 

He just sighed, “You’re going to think I’m crazy…” 

_ ‘I already do’  _ the thought flashed across Kai’s mind. 

Yeonjun dug around in his pocket for a second, “But I found this.” Finally extracting a partially crumpled piece of paper. He unfolded it quickly, holding it out for Kai to look at. 

Hueningkai scanned the foreign document once, then twice. Unsure at what he was supposed to be seeing. 

“Okay…” He ran a hand through his hair, feeling lost, looking up at Yeonjun. He had an expectant look on his face, “So Beomgyu-hyung is in a newspaper…?”

Yeonjun’s face fell, “no, Hyuka, this newspaper… It’s from 1875-”

Kai breathed out a harsh sigh and took a step back, shaking his head. This was already getting ridiculous.

“This image was taken over two centuries ago in Russia,” Yeonjun was getting impatient now, voice taking on a desperate tone as he could tell he was losing Kai, “This proves… Well it proves something.” 

Kai looked at his hyung, really looked at him. He couldn’t believe this was happening right now. Yeonjun had to know that he sounded insane right? He felt an overwhelming protectiveness wash over him, the calm he had been holding onto gone in an instant. 

“Hyung this is crazy,” He couldn’t help but gesture wildly at Yeonjun and the article, “You’ve really lost your mind…” 

Yeonjun huffed, now offended, “I’m just trying to protect you!” The article clenched in his fist. 

“I don’t need your protection!” Kai was seeing red, he knew in the back of his mind he needed to calm down before he did something he would regret, “And frankly if you’re going to act like this, I don’t want it!” 

Yeonjun’s face was scarlet, steam practically coming out of his ears. He glared at Hueningkai, “Fine.” 

He stormed off, quickly making his way out of the restaurant. Kai was left alone. Just standing there, feeling slightly hollow. Where had this all gone wrong? He slowly started back towards the table that housed the rest of his friends. When they came into view he could see that they were laughing about something. Enjoying each other's company. 

Kai felt angry all over again at the sight. Yeonjun had gone crazy. He sat back down at the table with a huff, arms crossing over his chest. The chatter died down at his return. 

Soobin looks concerned, “Hyuka what happened?” Always so gentle. 

“Where’s Yeonjun?” Taehyun also adds. 

Kai looks up, but not at either of them. He looks right at Beomgyu, who is sitting quietly. He looks concerned as well, but also uncomfortable. 

Hueningkai looks down again, “He left.” 

“What? Why?” Soobin is leaning, trying to make eye contact with his obviously upset dongsaeng. 

Kai complies looking up, feeling the fight drain out of him, “He’s lost his mind.” He must say it with enough finality that Soobin doesn’t question it.

Taehyun just lets out a laboring sigh. 

_ 'That idiot has no tact…”  _

“I’m sorry…” Beomgyu is wringing his hands in his lap, looking very uncomfortable now. 

Soobin is quick to set it straight, trying to keep the conversation afloat, “It’s not your fault,” He puts a hand on the smaller boy’s shoulder, giving him a comforting smile, “Yeonjun just… gets like that sometimes.” 

Taehyun can’t help but snort at that. Unintentionally lightening the mood. 

After a few more awkward attempts to get their conversation back onto happier things Soobin finally gets a laugh out of Hueningkai, bringing back their sunshine. 

They all do their best to make the rest of the night enjoyable, eating and telling funny stories. Beomgyu mostly observes, laughing along, soaking up every last bit of this wonderful memory. 

They stay at their table, long after their food is finished, just talking and enjoying each other’s company. It’s not until the sun begins to fade beyond the horizon that Hueningkai speaks up. 

“We should probably head home soon,” He looks over his shoulder out the window at the setting sun. 

Soobin checks the time, raising a confused eyebrow, “It’s barely even 8 pm.” 

“Yea well,” Kai shrugs, “It’s not really safe to walk home in the dark around here.” 

Taehyun sees Beomgyu nodding in agreement, usually this is the kind of thing he would stay out of. Letting the more extroverted members hash out details and argue over technicalities, but this was odd. He couldn’t help but feel like there was a larger story he was missing here. 

He decides to chime in, “Our campus is one of the safest in the nation.” 

Kai just looks nonchalant, “Well, I was followed the other day by some creepy man, so it can’t be that safe.” 

And that’s why he doesn’t get involved in these things. The look on Soobin-hyung’s face said it all. Hueningkai was in for the lecture of a lifetime. 

“What? Why didn’t call one of us for help??” 

Taehyun notices Beomgyu sink a little further down in his seat. That’s a little strange. 

“I did!” Kai defends himself, “I called Beomgyu-Hyung!” 

Oh dear, Taehyun can’t help but brace for impact. If he thought Kai was in for it before, he was absolutely gonna get it now. 

“Hyuka-ah…” That was Soobin’s warning tone. As if telling Hueningkai: Please tell me that you’re joking right now or I’m gonna freak out. 

Beomgyu seemed to sense the oncoming storm as well, looking at Taehyun with wide eyes. 

“Why are you upset Hyung?” Kai is defensive. Soobin meets his gaze head on in disbelief. 

“I’m not upset…” 

Yes he is. Taehyun knows as much. He makes his move quickly, standing up and grabbing hold of Beomgyu’s wrist. 

“We’re gonna go wait outside.” Neither party responds, but Soobin nods his acknowledgment. 

They swiftly make their escape, coming to stand outside the restaurant on the busy sidewalk as the sun is barely still visible over the skyline. 

“They may be a while.” Taehyun jokes, letting go of Beomgyu’s wrist after realizing that he still had a hold on it. 

The other boy just runs a hand through his hair, looking distressed, “I shouldn’t have come tonight…” Beomgyu’s tone is resigned, but also sad. Taehyun can tell he feels responsible for the mess that tonight was. 

“Maybe…” Taehyun knew he never really had a gift for comforting people, but he really felt like kicking himself when that was what left his mouth, “But i’m glad you did.” 

Wheew, saved that one. Beomgyu gives him a crooked smile, like he doesn’t quite believe him, “I wouldn’t be too worried, Hyung. Soobin is just very protective.” 

“And what about Yeonjun?” He’s gone quiet again. Taehyun should’ve seen this once coming.

“Oh, He’s just nuts” Beomgyu laughs at that, putting a hand over his mouth. His eyes are shining. Taehyun counts that as a mission accomplished. 

Taehyun considers asking Beomgyu about the photo for a second. It crosses his mind in a flash. Just putting it out there, point blank and getting an answer directly from the source. But then he remembers how Beomgyu had cowered under Yeonjun’s interrogation. He has this desire, something he didn’t quite notice before. He wants Beomgyu to trust him. 

“Beomgyu-Hyung?” 

“Hmm?” He looks at Taehyun with those bright eyes. They are at the same time innocent and all seeing. Reflecting the last light of the dying sun. 

“There’s something different about you…” 

Beomgyu stiffens slightly, stuttering out the beginnings of a response, “W-what?

“Not in a bad way…” He looks at his hyung, wondering when he got sentimental all of a sudden, “I’m kinda glad Hyuka knocked you over” 

They both share a smile, a beautiful moment. Words seemingly frozen in the orange light surrounding them. 

Similar to the sunset, moments like these all seem to fade away too soon. At least in Beomgyu’s opinion they did. Something caught his eye over Taehyun’s shoulder, causing his smile to immediately fall. 

Taehyun notices the shift immediately, turning to look at where His gaze is fixed, “What is it?” 

Beomgyu doesn’t respond, too transfixed on the shadow man lurking just across the street. 

Suddenly he hears the sound of screeching tires. 

Just like the sunset. In the blink of an eye everything can change. Somewhere in the busy street they're standing next to, a Motorcycle suddenly loses control. In a single second there is screaming, rubber against concrete, and a split second decision. 

He tackles Taehyun, sending both of them tumbling to the unforgiving sidewalk below. The back of Taehyun’s head hits the concrete with a sickening crack at the same time there is the ear splitting sound of crashing and crunching metal. One look back confirms that the bike had crashed into a light pole. The same one directly behind the space that Beomgyu and Taehyun had occupied not even a moment earlier.

Beomgyu looked down, his ears were ringing, everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. There was a glowing light emitting from Taehyun’s chest. What the hell? Time seemed to flicker to a stop. The sky takes on an odd greenish hue. Beomgyu looks back up, coming face to face with the disfigured face of the shadow man. His breath leaves his lungs in a quick whoosh. 

He whispers, “Hello little seer…” 

Time snaps back into place, not too dissimilar to when your ears pop on an airplane. 

Beomgyu becomes aware of too much all at once. The palms of his hands are stinging, as well as his knees where he made impact with the sidewalk. There are people gathered around, some are yelling. It's all too loud. He feels himself shaking as he looks down at the unconscious Taehyun. Beomgyu’s vision goes blurry with unwelcome tears. The sounds of sirens approaching gets added to the overwhelming cacophony already bouncing around in his brain. 

He sees police cars pull up and paramedics begin pushing people out of the way shouting directions. There are hands on him, pulling him away from Taehyun. He fights back at first, crying out, but then he makes out Hueningkai through his tears. 

Kai pulls him up and into a hug. Holding a hand tightly to the back of Beomgyu’s head, the other coming to rest around his waist. Beomgyu buries his face in the crook of Kai’s arm, not wanting to see anymore. He felt oddly distant from his body. He recognises the sound of Soobin’s voice yelling not too far off.

“What happened!?” He hoped that Soobin wasn’t asking him, “What the hell happened?!” 

He looks up from Hueningkai’s hold long enough to see the ambulance loading up Taehyun and the driver of the motorcycle. He isn’t sure where he is anymore. Everything is distant and wobbly. He is aware that people are speaking around him, Hueningkai still holding onto him. 

“He’s in shock…” 

“Beomgyu-Hyung!”

It’s a weird feeling, like everything has suddenly been plunged underwater. He can still hear the sound of metal on metal echoing in his ears. He’s being moved, he can gather that much. At some point a blanket is put over his shoulders. He hears voices come and go not really aware of anything or anyone in particular. Too busy replaying the moment over and over in his mind. 

The first thing Beomgyu truly becomes aware of is a hand rubbing his back. It’s a steady pressure grounding him as he slowly comes back to reality. His neck is stiff and the chair he’s sitting on is uncomfortable. His eyes are met with bright fluorescents and steril white walls that can only be read as one thing: hospital.

He realizes that he’s seated next to Soobin, the one rubbing his back. They are both in the waiting room he presumes from the gaudy artwork on the walls and the plastic chair that is breaking his spine. 

He looks up slowly to meet Soobin’s gaze.

“You with me now?” His voice is gentle and coaxing. He looks hopeful. Beomgyu wonders how long it has been. 

He opens his mouth to respond, but finds his throat to be painfully dry, so he opts to just nod. 

“That’s good.” Soobin smiles at him, concern never fully leaving his features. 

Beomgyu clears his throat, it hurts but he deals with it, “Is Taehyun okay?” It sounds like he gargled some wood chips, but the words come out nonetheless. 

Soobin lets out a sigh, “He’s fine,” He looks up and off into the distance for a second, “Just a minor concussion and some scrapes” He looks back at Beomgyu eyes slightly glassy, “It’s a miracle that neither of you were hurt...”

Soobins voice gets thick with emotion, cutting himself off. Beomgyu looks down awkwardly, observing his palms. They were numb, both wrapped in white bandages. He reaches his thumb to pick at it, quickly but softly stopped by Soobin’s free hand. 

“Where is Hueningkai-ah?” His voice still sounds jarringly awful. 

“”He’s with Taehyun…” 

Beomgyu just nods his understanding, trying to make a noise of affirmation, but instead causing his throat to burn more. 

Soobin seems to read his mind, patting his back one last time before moving to stand, “I’m gonna go grab you a water, okay?” He stands, running a hand through his disheveled hair, looking entirely weathered, “I’ll probably call Yeonjun-Hyung too… Let him know what happened…” Soobin walks off in the direction that Beomgyu can only assume is the vending machine. 

He takes a moment to put his head in his hands, mindful of the bandages there. To call tonight eventful would be the understatement of the year. All he wanted to do was curl up in his bed and sleep for maybe a few decades. But he knew he couldn’t. If the events that had just transpired had shown him anything, it was that he needed to work quicker. 

Beomgyu felt his magic stir, he really didn’t need this right now. He didn’t have the energy to stop the vision when it came. He allowed his sight to be overtaken by black. 

_ He’s back, standing on the sidewalk with Taehyun. The soft glow of the sun’s final light bouncing around, making the space look even more dream like. _

_ Beomgyu notices that his feet are seemingly glued to the ground. He tries to call out to Taehyun, but it is useless. His mouth is locked shut.  _

_ The light from Taehyun’s chest appears again. This time Beomgyu is able to observe it a little more closely. It looks to be an orb of some kind, nestled right between his lungs.  _

_ The scene fades, like dripping water colors, all blending together. Becoming unrecognisable, just one disgusting mixture of black.  _

_ He sees a hospital bed, like a spotlight in the sea of darkness. The Light from Taehyun is there, lying in the bed. It’s not as bright as before, as if holding onto it’s last bits of life.  _

_ Beomgyu feels thoroughly hollowed out and empty, the world turns on its axis. Flipping him upside down until he is face to face with an old man.  _

_ The man is blind, but in a way Beomgyu knows he is seen. The man speaks, “Are you there?” The question echoes around the empty space, taunting him. _

_ Before he can even think about responding he is transported once again, he is this time in an open field.  _

_ Beomgyu hears a voice, “When the sky breaths magic once more the Man of the Double Edged Sword will be set free.”  _

_ Part of the prophecy. He recognises it. But why?  _

Before he has time to think or move or say anything. The vision aptly ends. Leaving him with more questions than answers and feeling more lost than ever before. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: More magic, more prophecy, and (everyone's fav) more Yeonjun!


	8. After Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the accident and the vision. Beomgyu makes a difficult decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter was getting so long that I had to split it into two parts XP

“Beomgyu-ah?” 

_ Where was he again?  _

“Are you with me, Beomgyu-ah?” 

_ The Hospital. That’s right.  _ The events of the last few hours came rushing back. The accident, Taehyun, his magic, the vision. Oh God. The vision. 

“I need you to open your eyes Beomgyu-ah.” _Who was that?_ Beomgyu felt like he had been ripped so harshly from the vision that he wasn’t even sure what was going on anymore. 

He had been with Soobin-hyung, right? Yes, that must be who’s speaking to him then. 

Beomgyu ventured a peek at the outside world. To be honest, he hadn’t even realized that he had closed his eyes in the first place. 

The first thing he saw was the hazy outline of Soobin. He was crouched down in front of Beomgyu, placing himself right in the other boy’s line of sight. He had worry etched into his expression. 

Soobin reached out to place a hand on Beomgyu’s own where, he had without realizing, been pulling at his hair. The water he had went to get long forgotten at his side. 

“Are you okay Beomgyu-ah?” 

He felt slightly breathless, like he had just run a marathon. This wasn’t normal for after a vision, even a very dramatic one. He figured his body had most likely just hit it’s limit. Beomgyu found himself leaning forward on instinct. Soobin accepted the smaller with open arms. 

The hug was awkward, Beomgyu from the chair, Soobin on the floor, but they made it work. Soobin placed a protective hand over the back of his head, pulling Beomgyu into the crook of his neck. 

That was just enough to break him. 

His breath hitched, “I-it’s all too m-much…” Beomgyu’s shoulders quaked with the force of his cries. The sight of disfigured shadow man and blood seeping out from the back of Taehyun’s head haunted him whenever he ventured to close his eyes. The sounds of Hueningkai’s screams that followed him into his dreams echoed along with the sound of metal screeching and tires skidding. 

Soobin just held him tighter. Beomgyu let himself sink the rest of the way to the floor, settling on his knees next to his hyung. He felt like he was being forced down. A world crushing weight had settled on his shoulders. 

“I know…”  _ If only you did _ . Soobins comfort did little to quell the sadness and overwhelming heaviness that he felt inside. 

He had no idea how much time had passed. It could have been an hour or only a minute that he spent in Soobin’s arms soaking up all the comfort he could get. After his tears began to slow Beogyu pulled back, wiping at his face with a clenched fist. 

“I’m sorry…” 

Soobin just shakes his head, practically shoving the water bottle into his hands.

“Don’t apologize,” He stretches a little before moving to stand up, Beomgyu slowly following suit, “Honestly I’d be more worried if you had no reaction at all.”

Beomgyu let Soobin guide him back into the hard plastic hospital chair, considering his words. He almost feels like laughing. He’s experienced worse. For god’s sake, he witnessed the great purge first hand. The public execution of his family and friends. He had been on the run, fearing for his life as long as he could remember. So why was this tearing him up inside? 

The two of them settled into companionable silence for a while. Beomgyu let his mind wander. Although this past day had been eventful, he still felt as if he knew nothing. He hadn’t really gotten any further in understanding the prophecy or the shadow man or what he had to do with anything. He felt lost. He didn’t really know what next step to take. 

Beomgyu thought back to his vision. Something had been different about it. What? He had no idea. Usually his visions were at least somewhat cohesive, but this last one… it had just been a jumbled mess. Perhaps it was a testament to his own mental state, but it just felt different. And that man. He had almost forgotten. There had been a man in his vision, one he hadn’t recognised. Beomgyu wracked his brain, trying desperately to give meaning to the seeming random jumble of images. 

Suddenly the door to the waiting room slammed open, causing both Soobin and himself to jump. Beomgyu quickly cowered though, inadvertently making himself small at the sight of who it was. 

Choi Yeonjun stood on the threshold, face unreadable. He quickly scanned the room, eyes moving straight over Soobin and locking on Beomgyu. He stalked over, Beomgyu distantly registered how much he resembled a hunter approaching their prey. And in a moment he realised: He was prey.

“What the hell did you do!?” Before Yeonjun could reach him physically, Soobin intervened. He placed a hand on Yeonjun’s chest, stopping any attempt to move forward. 

“Yeonjun-Hyung, You already know what happened,” Soobin’s voice is deadly calm. A stark difference from what he would sound like, Beomgyu was sure, if he tried to defend himself. 

The two stared at each other for a moment. Silent and calculating. They both had a deadly glare. Soobin kept his hand firmly planted, placing Yeonjun at arms distance. The tension in the air could be cut with a knife. Beomgyu felt even worried to breathe.

In the end, the moment was broken by Hueningkai. He came from the other direction where he had been with Taehyun in his room. 

“Hyungs…” Kai approaches with caution. He seemed to immediately sense the unrest in the room. 

Yeonjun stood down at the sight of Hueningkai. Turning his head slightly embarrassed. Beomgyu accepted the distraction readily. Anything really to get the attention off of him. 

Soobin seemed to recover the quickest, “Hyuka, How’s Taehyun doing?” 

Kai also seemed more than willing to go along with Soobin, “He’s fine,” He gave a half-smile, “I think he’s itching to go home more than anything.” 

The attempt to lighten the mood fell slightly flat on the latent hostility that was still very present. 

“That’s good....” Even Soobin seemed unsure on how to proceed.

After a beat of contemplative silence, “I’m going to go talk to him I guess…” Soobin made a move towards the door. Beomgyu couldn’t blame him either. He wouldn’t want to be left alone with a ticking time bomb either. 

“Actually…” Hueningkai shuffled a little awkwardly. The words seemed a little painful for him to grit out. The boy had never been very good with confrontation after all, and confrontation with his hyungs on top of that. 

Kai’s eyes drift over to where Beomgyu is still sitting. His stomach drops involuntarily. 

“Taehyun said he wants to talk to Beomgyu-Hyung.” You could hear a pin drop in the room. The only noise coming from the old AC unit in the corner. Beomgyu felt all eyes in the room shift to him. He didn’t like that feeling one bit. After spending centuries purposely blending in he wasn’t even sure how to act as the center of attention. 

“O-okay…” He stood up a bit unsteadily. Making sure to avoid looking at Yeonjun. He could practically feel the back of his head burning where he was sure Yeonjun was staring. 

He does glance at Soobin briefly, the older giving him a strained smile and a weak thumbs up. The walk across the waiting room almost felt like a walk down death row. Whatever waited for him on the other side had to be better than this. 

Hueningkai accompanied him down to Taehyun’s room. The eternal sunshine that he always seemed to have with him was dimmed out by the harsh fluorescents of the hallway. 

Kai stopped in front of a particular door, turning around and offering Beomgyu the first real smile he had seen in a while. Hueningkai was always like a breath of fresh air in his lungs. 

“This is Taehyun-hyung’s room,” He smiled wider. Beomgyu was pretty sure that he was doing it to encourage him, “I’ll be in the waiting room if you need anything.” 

Beomgyu did his best to match the smile that Kai had given him. He had a feeling he was failing miserably, “Thanks Kai-ah.” 

And just like that he was gone. Leaving Beomgyu alone outside Taehyun’s door. It felt more like a brick wall in that moment though, the idea of what lies behind it frightened him. 

How much did Taehyun remember? This thought had occurred to him a while ago. What if Taehyun remembered everything: the light, the shadow man, the fact that he was a seer. Beomgyu shudders, reaching for the door knob. He’d never know just standing out here. 

He opened the door tentatively, not wanting to startle Taehyun with an abrupt entry.

“Hi Hyung,” Taehyun’s sitting up in bed, looking a little worse for wear but overall pretty good. He has a pristine white bandage around his head, but otherwise nothing else lends itself to him being injured. His facial expression is infuriatingly neutral. Beomgyu can’t glean anything from it as to where this conversation is going to lead. 

Taehyun motions to a chair by his bedside. Probably previously occupied by Hueningkai he figures, “You can sit if you want.” 

So Beomgyu does. He settles into the seat a bit uncomfortable at first, waiting for Taehyun to speak again. 

“What happened, Hyung?” Taehyun spoke in an unreadable tone. 

The question honestly caught him off guard, “ W-well, we were outside and a biker l-lost control and uh… and you hit your head trying to get out of the way-”

“No.” Taehyun looks slightly perturbed. Obviously that wasn’t the answer he was looking for. Beomgyu swallows hard, “You know what I’m talking about Hyung.”

If he could even form a proper sentence he would probably think about playing dumb, but his mouth doesn’t need any help doing that right now.

“I-I don’t….” His hands are suddenly an extremely interesting thing to look at. 

The silence drags on for a moment. He hears Taehyun take a steadying breath.

“I’m part Fae you know…” 

Well, he wasn’t expecting that. Where was Taehyun going with this? His head jerked up to look back at the boy across from him, only to find that Taehyun was gazing out the window. 

“Mmm” It’s all Beomgyu can muster to produce a muffled sound of agreement. 

“Yea,” Taehyun lets out another heavy breath, before turning to face his hyung. Eyes filled with a determination that Beomgyu hadn’t expected from him, “My parents always told me that magic was evil…” 

Beomgyu’s mind began to race with all the implications of that one statement. 

Taehyun just barreled on, “I knew I had magic, They told me that too, But I never tried to use it. I was so afraid that I’d be evil if I did. S-so-” 

He cut himself off once again to take a steadying breath. Beomgyu didn’t dare interrupt him now. 

“So when… like this light is coming out of me I can’t help but- I- just… I don’t know-” Taehyun didn’t need to say his fear out loud for Beomgyu to understand. Actually Beomgyu probably understood that feeling better than anyone else in the world. 

“I didn’t stay conscious for very long… I just remember this feeling, a-and the light, and you looking down at me.” 

He feels conflicted: of course he is relieved that Taehyun didn’t discover his identity, but then again… there is something else. Beomgyu can tell that Taehyun is struggling to hold onto his composure, but the boy carries on. 

“I was so scared, Hyung- I always thought magic was evil…. That nothing good can come from it….and I never even questioned it… so-please-” Taehyun met his eyes now, tears brimming, just about to flow over the edge. 

“Please, t-tell me that it’s not! Please tell me it’s not evil…” 

This is a crossroads. A tipping point into the unknown. Beomgyu can feel himself swaying. As if standing on a thin line over a canyon. He has a choice: venture into the uncharted of sharing his own magic, or stay safe: keeping it to himself. 

Magic is neither good nor bad, he knows this. All magic users walk that morally grey area. They have a choice to use magic however they please. There are evil magicians, just as there are evil men. It doesn’t make his decision any easier.

Beomgyu wishes his mom was here, she always knew what to say when he was faced with a difficult decision. She would always quote an ancient proverb, straight from memory. He could never be like that… he simply lacked the attention span. But in this moment the words came to him. A phrase he hadn’t thought of probably since he was forced to learn it in school. It was the creed of Bazi. The oath all seer children and adults knew alike.

_ ‘We are neither sinner nor saint. We are simply seekers. A timeless rose. A flower that will never wither, but with roots nowhere.’  _

He saw his family, his people. He remembered his life before the purge. The children running and laughing in his homeland echoed in his mind's eye. The beautiful temple where he had gained his education. The quaint village where his people had practiced quietly for centuries before he had come into the world. For so long their memory had become too painful. Now, he realized he had allowed his own attachment to cloud his judgment. 

Beomgyu let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. 

“I can’t…” The words echoed around the small room in a way that was unnatural. Taehyun looks away quickly, wiping at his eyes as the tears finally fall. 

“I can’t answer that for you Taehyun-ah.” 

Beomgyu knew he was doing the right thing, so why did it feel so horrible. The way Taehyun wouldn’t meet his eyes made his heart ache. There was something cold and dark seeping its way across his insides. The previous confidence he felt was falling away. This was his heritage. He knew that this was the seer way. There was no permanent place for him. Not anywhere. 

‘ _ A flower that will never wither, with roots nowhere…’ _

Why did it hurt so badly?

“I-I’m sorry…” His voice comes out quiet, almost a whisper. 

“No, I’m sorry Hyung,” Taehyun never fails to surprise him,” I shouldn’t have asked that of you.” His voice has a false vibrato to it that Beomgyu can tell he is using to mask his true feelings. 

The words are right there. It isn’t too late and Beomgyu knows it, but he just can’t. They feel stuck, impossible to escape. Maybe he really is just a coward after all. Maybe all the seers were. Perhaps they were all just one big race of cowards. That would explain him after all. 

“I-i think I need to be alone for a little while…” This is Taehyun’s polite way of asking him to leave. Beomgyu doesn't blame him one bit. To be honest, he feels a bit of relief at the chance to get out of that room.

“Okay…” He gets up slowly, the nagging conflict never once leaving his chest. 

Beomgyu makes it to the door in a few steps, head down as he grips the doorknob a bit too tight. 

He makes a resolve, “Taehyun-ah!” The younger starts at Beomgyu’s too loud declaration of his name. Well, there’s no going back now, “I-if it means anything… I don’t think you’re evil... I don’t think you could be, even if you tried.” 

Beomgyu leaves in a hurry after that, practically running down the hallway in the general direction he remembers coming in. His thoughts are running at a million miles an hour. 

Taehyun has magic. Not just that, but repressed magic. Beomgyu had the sinking feeling as well, that the vision from earlier. It could really only mean one thing: an outcome that he was less than happy about. Taehyun, along with Hueningkai, were both included in the prophecy in some way. 

This was all way out of his league. It was probably the 80th time he had felt that way in the last 24 hours. Beomgyu wiped a few stray tears that had slipped from his eyes with absentminded annoyance. 

He feels an intense amount of loneliness settle into his bones. Beomgyu wonders how his ancestors did it. How could they go their entire lifetimes without ever having anyone who truly knew them. The ancient proverbs talked all about what to do, but never about how to deal with how you felt. It’s a crushing realization: to know that the only person who will ever truly know him is himself. Beomgyu doesn't even know how he would tell someone if he wanted to.

He was never taught how to open up to people. He was raised in the way of the Seer. Taught to walk alone.

Beomgyu reaches the end of the hall. He finds himself stuck, looking out on the three friends who are seated together. He knows he will never be one of them. I was a fun charade while it lasted, but he is not human. He is a Seer. He is magical. He is different. Beomgyu isn’t sure why he let himself go on like this for so long, playing with his own feelings. Teasing himself with the idea of a normal life, fully knowing that it would never work out. Better to tear the bandaid off now. 

He turns away from the group. Finding a new resolution clear in his mind. He may not be able to be one of them, but he’d be damned if anything happened to them. Beomgyu was going to save them. He was going to defeat the shadow man, quietly and behind the scenes. And then when all was said and done he would disappear. Like dust in the wind. 

_ ‘Thank you Hueningkai-ah’  _ Beomgyu stepped out of the back entrance of the hospital. Letting the cool air hit his face as he looked up at the sky, ‘ _ for being kind to me and letting me be normal with you for a while.’  _

_ ‘Thank you Soobin-Hyung, for supporting me,’  _ He started walking in the direction of his apartment. A new resoluteness in his stride. 

_ 'Th _ _ ank you Taehyun-ah, for giving me this push. Thank you for making me realize what needed to be done.'  _

Beomgyu knew he looked crazy; rumpled clothes, thoroughly tangled hair, bandaged hands, and a steady grim determination, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care at the moment. 

‘ _ Thank you to Yeonjun-hyung as well… you showed me there was no place for me. You were right. I will fix this.’  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Beomgyu gains some help from a new friend.


	9. Van Horn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beomgyu finally gets some answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait between chapters :( I feel really bad, but I got really sick this week, so I've been dealing with that and kinda a lack of motivation to write. I wanna thank everyone who left a comment of the last chapter that really really helps me get inspired and just brightens my day. <3 Anyway I hope you enjoy :)
> 
> TW: mild language

Beomgyu unlocked his apartment door with shaky hands. It took him one, two, three tries to even get the key in the lock. All the adrenaline that had previously been fuleing him had suddenly left at the sight of his home. He felt a vast emptiness looking into his trashed apartment. It was completely untouched from the last time he had been here. From before the accident. Before everything went to shit. 

He almost felt like crying again. Almost. Beomgyu sucked in a sharp inhale and set his phone and keys on the counter. His legs led him unprompted towards the pile of previous research stack upon his living room floor. He picked up the first blank page he could find, digging absentmindedly for something to write with. 

He began to write an account of his last vision. Not really thinking about the action. Something to occupy his mind. He knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep, even if that's what he wanted right now. So he got to work. Beomgyu knew that this situation was way beyond him. He had known that from the start. He was just one Seer. And a young, impulsive, radical one at that. He knew he needed help. He just had no idea where to get it. He couldn’t go to Hueningkai or any of the others. That just wasn’t an option anymore. 

At some point he had stopped writing. Holding the pen loosely, hovering over the paper as his eyes stared off into the distance. He tried his best to bring his wandering mind back to present, tearing his eyes to look down at the page. Something about this last vision had been odd, and not just his body’s adverse reaction to it. Although strange, that wasn’t the thing that he couldn’t put his finger on. It was something else. 

In the middle of the vision, it had felt almost… interrupted? Like someone or something else had tried to interfere. In his mind's eye he could recall it. It had been an old man. He had been thrown nauseatingly around in his own vision until he had been face to face with a blind old man that he hadn’t recognised. It intrigued him. There had to be something to that. Beomgyu got up to pace.

The man had asked him, “Are you there?” Almost like he had been trying to communicate, but that was impossible… wasn’t it? Magic was such a vast, ancient, and unknowable force that Beomgyu guesses that there may just be something that he doesn’t know. He knows that there are ways for people of magical descent to communicate. Astral projection had been a very helpful tool when he was growing up. Someone could broadcast themselves out into the magical forces all around and anyone else attuned to that wavelength could hear them. 

It really was a wild theory. The thing he was considering was rash, foolish, and could potentially get him killed… but when had he ever done any less. Beomgyu knew that there was a potential that this man was just a part of his vision and not real, and him broadcasting himself into the universe would most certainly attract much unwanted attention. Especially since he was already being tracked by a shadow monster. But at the moment he really couldn’t think of a better option. 

He knew he was cornered. Backed up against the wall. So if doing this could potentially get him a lead or just a step in the right direction, that was a risk he was willing to take. It wasn’t a calculated risk by any means. Honestly if he sat to consider it for even a few more minutes he would most likely back out, but that wasn’t an option. He had friends-- no, people to save.

So Beomgyu sat, cross-legged, in the center of his living room. He set down the paper and pen he had been using earlier in front of him. He closed his eyes cautiously, slowly beginning to feel out the magic in the space. An unnatural wind picks up around him as he begins to extend his signature. 

Beomgyu knew that this process was a beautiful one. He had witnessed it many times as a child. Out of all the rituals this had been up there with his favorite. Every magic user had a different signature, it was expressed whenever they used magic. Everyone’s signature was unique and, in Beomgyu’s opinion, beautiful. His mother had been yellow. It would swirl around in beautiful patterns and shapes when she performed magic. It sparkled in the midday sun, always giving her a youthful and otherworldly glow. His father had been a steely silver. It was more contained, but abstract. It brought a blanket of comfort whenever he would cast a spell or perform a ritual. 

Beomgyu wasn’t sure what his signature looked like. He hadn’t really had a chance to fully develop it before the great purge and he hadn’t had anyone to ask afterwards. Most magic was performed with eyes closed so it wasn’t like he could just look and see either. He didn’t let it bother him though. He had convinced himself, something so inconsequential didn’t really matter. His was probably ugly anyway. 

He lets his magic reach further. The area felt vast and empty. A strange quiet in something that used to be so alive. It was like a ghost town, sending shivers down his arms as he ventured further still. Beomgyu feels discouraged, this had been a stupid idea. 

Until, he feels someone echo back. It startles him. He reaches out frantically, trying to latch on to the quickly dispersing signature. 

_ “Are you there…”  _ It's the voice. The one from his vision again. He can’t see the man, but he can feel his presence.

Beomgyu replies,  _ “Yes, I am here…”  _ His words ripple across the great expanse of magic.  _ “I need your help….” _

_ “I know.”  _ The man’s signature is dark, but not black. It’s mirky and oily. Someone would probably think it was evil at first glance, but Beomgyu thought it was mesmerizing. Like the wings of a crow.

_ “It isn’t safe to speak here…”  _ Beomgyu feels the signature start to pull away. He pulls back. 

The man speaks again,  _ “The darkness… it follows you…”  _

Beomgyu feels a panic rise in his chest, the connection is being severed. 

_ “Wait!”  _ He reaches out blindly trying to find and hold onto the man’s signature. He knew that it probably wasn’t polite to do so, but he didn’t see any other choice. He needed his help. 

The connection cut off. Leaving Beomgyu on his floor, sitting, breathing heavily, feeling more frustrated than ever. It felt like the entire universe was just against him at this point. He slammed his fist into the ground, letting out a grunt of anger. He reached out wildly, grabbing the paper that he had been writing on, ready to tear, crumple, and just destroy the damn thing. 

Something caught his eye. Stopping him dead in his tracks. He held the paper up again, inspecting it closely. His mood swung in an instant. An incredulous laugh escaping him.

There on the paper, clear as day, written in ancient runes, and in a handwriting he didn’t recognize was an address. An address that hadn’t been there before. 

“Crazy old bastard!” Beomgyu let himself laugh for real now. The relief that had flowed through him was enough to push him forward. He was sure if anyone could see him now they would call an ambulance. Him holding a piece of notebook paper, laughing hysterically. But he couldn’t find it in himself to care at the moment. This was his breakthrough. 

Beomgyu wasted no time. He gathered his things, not even bothering to change or brush his hair, he slipped on his shoes and was out the door in an instant. The excitement carried him by foot all the way to downtown Seoul. The address led him to the front of a dingy looking apartment building. Only then did he let his anticipation dwindle. The moldy walls and rickety fence weren’t too inviting. Despite his apprehension Beomgyu continued on. Taking one last deep breath, gathering up all his confidence before heading inside. 

He made quick work of the layout, finding the stairwell with no problem. He climbed up to the third floor, cautiously walking the length of the hallway until he reached the room he came for. Beomgyu hesitated for a second, fist hovering over the door about to knock. He closed his eyes. He had to do this. For Hueningkai, for Taehyun, for Soobin… for Yeonjun-hyung, he guessed.   
The thought of the people he needed to protect was enough courage for him, prompting him to hit his fist a few times against the old wood door. The hall is silent of a moment, the only sound being that of his own bated breath. Then the deadbolt turns, sounding old and overused. He hears a muffled voice call out from beyond the door.

“Enter.” 

Beomgyu does so slowly. Opening the door worriedly and hovering over the threshold with his guard up. He can see the man there. He has his back to Beomgyu looking out the window, presumably observing the city below them. 

Beomgyu is unsure how to proceed, “uh-uhm, excuse me...sir-” 

The man turns to face him. Catching Beomgyu off guard, causing him to take an involuntary step back. He truly is blind, eyes an unnatural shade of milky white, but similar to in his vision, Beomgyu feels seen. 

The man motions him forward and only then does Beomgyu remember his manners. How disappointed his mom would be. He scrambles to kneel before his elder, quickly putting forehead to the hardwood floor. 

The man just chuckles, Beomgyu jerks his head up to look. The man beckons him up once again, speaking this time, “There is no need for such formalities…” He turns slightly, as if considering something that Beomgyu can’t see, “ I have been around far too long, Beomgyu.” 

That really rattles him. This man knows his name. How? 

“Sir…” 

The man looks right back at where Beomgyu is. Unsettlingly so. Beomgyu avoids his eyes, instead focusing on the man's mouth, where he is wearing a soft smile. It’s almost enough to rid him of his uneasiness. 

“Please, call me Elymas.” 

Beomgyu just nods mutely before remembering that the man can’t see him. He feels his cheeks burn with embarrassment. 

“Ah Elymas sir… I-uh- well, I reached out for your help…” Beomgyu isn’t even sure where to start. 

The man doesn’t seem to mind his rambling though, stroking his chin presumably deep in thought, “Hmmm.” 

“I saw you in my vision…” Beomgyu wanted to kick himself, what kind of explanation was that?

“Yes… Your magical signature is strong,” The man begins to walk towards his kitchen. Beomgyu stands still, unsure whether he should follow.

“I am surprised you weren’t discovered sooner.” the Man’s tone isn’t mean or condescending, but Beomgyu can’t help but feel a little indigent. He wasn’t helpless. He had protected himself just fine for years. That hadn’t been luck.

“What?” apparently the man could sense his frustration or confusion as he simply smiled again. 

“Well, you have picked up a dark energy, have you not?” The man had begun to rummage in one of his cupboards, eventually pulling out a jar of what looked to be tea leaves. 

“I guess you could call it that,” Beomgyu rubbed his neck awkwardly, approaching the kitchen as well, “He did try to kill me…” 

The man-Elymas, nodded his understanding, “Yes, what you have is a Ashmedai. Nasty little things really,” He waved his hand, making the pot he had grabbed fill magically with water, “But they do not have free will, they are created beings. Someone else has sent it after you.” 

Beomgyu considered this, “So someone else wants to kill me…?” 

The man nodded once again, muttering something in a different language as the water immediately boiled under his hand, “I imagine it probably has much to do with your prophecy…”

Beomgyu’s eyes widened, he hadn’t even mentioned that yet, “You know about that?” 

Elymas just waves a hand in his direction, too preoccupied with his task, “Of course, what kind of mage would I be?” He states this like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

“Do you know what it means?” Elymas looks at him now, he has a calm expression. His face is quite unnerving now without his smile. 

“Patience Beomgyu,” He steps forward, placing his hands on the counter that stands between the two magic users, “Some answers are better found for oneself.” 

Beomgyu sees red. This guy had to be kidding right. He had hijacked his vision, taunted him by knowing the prophecy, and now wanted to pull some greater than thou self-discovery bullshit. Well, Beomgyu wasn’t going to put up with that.

“I don’t have that kind of time!” Beomgyu raised his voice, magic growing restless just beneath is skin, “One of my friends almost died last night!” 

The man just considered him in silence after his outburst. For a terrifying moment Beomgyu thinks that Elymas might just kick him out and refuse to help because of his attitude. He doesn’t though, he just turns back to his tea. Reaching into another cupboard for two mugs. 

“I never understood the Seer’s urge to be so disconnected from everything,” the man shrugs, pouring the steaming liquid into the cups, “I’ve met many Seers, none of which were better off because of their philosophy…” 

Beomgyu just stares in confusion for a second, unsure of how to proceed. Elymas doesn’t wait for his response, he just smiles again and continues speaking. 

“Your prophecy,” He slides one of the mugs in front of Beomgyu, “It is composed of five parts.” It isn’t a question.

Beomgyu answers anyway, “Yes…?” 

“Well boy, you know how prophecies work, you are the Seer here after all.” Elymas looks at him expectantly, taking a sip of his own drink. 

Beomgyu’s mind blanks, “U-uh well, five parts…. U-um, that means five fulfilments, right...like- five things have to happen…” He trails off, feeling dumb. 

Elymas nods encouragingly, “Not just things, but people.” He motions to Beomgyu’s bag, “You have it with you, no?” 

Beomgyu scrambles to produce his copy. The paper is crumpled and his handwriting is atrocious, but he figures it doesn’t really matter. He offers the paper to Elymas, but the man declines. 

“Who do you see?” 

Beomgyu considers it for himself. There are five people listed, each with a different task of sorts. The North Star, the Guardian, the man of the Double Edged Sword, the Intercessor, and the Fifth Light. The excitement of the discovery drains away as quickly as it came. Who were these people?

He voiced this to Elymas, “Who..? Where do I find these people?” 

He just shakes his head, “You don’t.” He sounds certain. Elymas smiles as an idea begins to form in Beomgyu's mind. It’s absolutely crazy. So crazy it may just be true. 

Elymas takes a drink of his tea knowingly, “So, do you have anyone in mind?” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: Some action. (that's all I can say without spoiling ;) )


	10. Warchild

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Bring magic back." 
> 
> "I will."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhh sorry for the long wait between chapters :( I hope ppl are still interested in this story :(

Beomgyu is reeling where he stands. Mouth gaping as he stares back at Elymas. The older man just nods, a knowing smile creeping across his expression. Beomgyu would almost think it patronizing if he weren’t in such a state of shock.

“I can think of a few people…” His voice is hushed, almost unbelieving. No matter how hard he tried, in the end, none of his efforts ever meant anything. Deep down he thinks he knew this already. There was no way to escape the truth. The unmovable and unshakable hand of destiny had been working all along. All of them: Hueningkai-ah, Taehyun-ah, Soobin-hyung, Yeonjun-hyung. All of them were involved in some way. Woven together, strung along as if by fate. They were destined to meet. Like a star with five points. 

Elymas didn’t respond verbally, he seemed to understand. The man simply started to walk away. Beomgyu watched in mute confusion as the older went into another room. He didn’t dare question him now, not after everything Elymas had done for him. 

He returned quickly, holding something Beomgyu didn’t recognise at first. It was medium sized in length and covered in a black cloth. Beomgyu could feel a resonant amount of magic coming off the unknown object, This caught his attention. Elymas sets the object gingerly on the counter, lifting off the fabric with something akin to reverence. 

“I think this will help you fix your Ashmedai problem... “ His voice was light, but his face was grim. 

The object turned out to be a dagger. Although securely in a sheath, Boeomgyu could see it glowing a dull white. His magic responded to the warm light, wanting to reach out to meet the blade. 

Elymas hands it to Beomgyu, who handles it as if it was made of glass. He unsheaths it slowly. The magic resonates around the room in a low audible hum. It feels so right and his magic reacts, swirling around, ruffling his hair and clothes. He holds the blade at eye level, completely mesmerized by the enchanted glow. The dagger feels perfectly balanced in his hands. 

“I-I can’t accept this…” He lowers the blade suddenly, looking back to Elymas holding it out for him to take. 

The man hesitates before taking hold of the handle, “You can,” His eyes once again look upon the blade with reverence, “It was forged in the river Bann. The river of the goddess.” 

So the blade was enchanted. Beomgyu had figured as much, but he had been unsure about the gravity of it until now. Not only was the blade forged in enchanted waters, but it was also blessed. He was in no way worthy. 

“This was meant to be wielded by a great warrior.” Elymas holds the blade out to Beomgyu again, unseeing eyes piercing right into his soul. 

Beomgyu feels apprehension rise in his chest. A great warrior? 

“B-but that’s not me…” He holds a hand out to reject the blade, but Elymas pushes the hilt into his chest. The weight of responsibility settles squarely on his shoulders.

“It has chosen you.” As if to show its agreement the dagger pulsed a bright white, the sound resonated off the walls. A beautiful tone. 

Beomgyu can’t help but take the blade back. It’s drawn to his hands like a moth to the flame. He returns it to its sheath, dulling the light incrementally. He hugs the weapon to his chest, the warmth of its magic coursing through him. He isn’t sure what to say. 

“You shouldn’t linger here…” Elymas turns to face him. Beomgyu looks at him slightly dazed, “The darkness will find you quickly out in the open like this.” He felt a shiver travel involuntarily down his spine.

“After the stunt you pulled earlier as well, I’m not even sure if your home would be safe to go back to…” Elymas seemed to consider this thoroughly, but Beomgyu is confused. As much as he didn’t want it to be true, his house may not be safe anymore. He had, in essence, sent out a beacon to all magic users, good or bad, telling them his location. 

“You never know,” Elymas seemed to sense his apprehension, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, “Perhaps it will be fine, just keep your eyes open.” 

Beomgyu nods, looking down at the dagger in his hands with a grim determination, “Thank you for all your help” He tries his best to meet the unseeing gaze of the older man. 

He smiles gently, “Of course Beomgyu,” If he had to venture a guess, Beomgyu would say there was a look akin to hope in his eyes, “I’m trusting you to fulfill the prophecy…”

Beomgyu squared his shoulders. The weight that had rested on them was still there. It was still startlingly heavy at times. He may not know what he’s doing, but he was trying. And just knowing that there was someone counting on him. Someone who believed that maybe he could do something great. Well, that was enough for him to pick up the load. Grab that earth crushing responsibility and go. Take it for what it’s worth and make it to the end. 

Because in the end, he knew one thing: he was a survivor. He had survived when the humans had tried to exterminate his family. He had survived all these centuries alone. He had survived before, and he would survive again. 

“Bring magic back.” 

He looked at Elymas with the spark of a passion, “I will.” 

All Beomgyu had even done is continue on. Even when this storm passes and all the clouds go away. He will stand here, the same as he’s been. He doesn’t want to just survive anymore. He wants to take life by the collar and push. He’s been down too many times. All he’s ever done is run away. Beomgyu wants to remain. He wants to be the last one standing. Look at the sky and know that he fought to the very end. And so he will. 

Beomgyu made his way out of the apartment, footing steady as he approached the stairwell. It was surprisingly easy to make that promise to Elymas. In the past he would have stuttered around. Probably saying “I’ll try my best” but today had something about it. He had said “I will” And he had meant it. 

Beomgyu entered the stairs preoccupied, not picking up on the weird energy of the area until the door shut with a startling boom behind him. 

He whipped around, hand immediately reaching for the hilt of his weapon. Maybe all this intensity had gotten him paranoid, but he felt off. Jumpy. Something in the air had shifted, as soon as he had entered the stairwell. His magic blared a warning, resonating loud and sharp behind him. 

Beomgyu followed its lead on instinct. His magic wasn’t often wrong. He swung the blade out of its sheath, blocking the incoming blow that would have surely cracked his skull.

Beomgyu finds himself face-to-face with the disfigured smile of the Ashmedai. 

“I found you” it snarled between their two blades. 

The monster reared back for another blow and Beomgyu ran. Perhaps it was the cowardly way out, but he knew he was no match for the beast in a fair fight, enchanted blade or no. 

He only made it down a few stairs before the Ashmedai grabbed the strap of his backpack, yanking him back harshly. Beomgyu landed on his back hard. Head bouncing off the linoleum stairs with a painful crack.

Before he even has a chance to regain his breath the monster is bringing his own sword down again. Beomgyu reaches for a clumsy block. Blades clashing with a metallic clang. He focuses all his energy into pushing the incoming weapon away from his face. It's a losing battle though, as the Ashmedai has more raw strength as well as the high ground. The monster’s disfigured features contort into a smile as his blade breaks the skin of Beomgyu’s cheek. 

He’s breathing heavily, anxious but also exhausted. Beomgyu pushes with everything he has to get the monster's hands away just long enough for him to roll. He pops to his feet as the Ashmedai’s blade hits the place his head had previously occupied. 

Beomgyu looks behind him. He is dangerously close to the railing. Nowhere to run but a three story drop to the stairs below. Beomgyu readies himself, pulling his dagger up in a fighting stance.   
The monster charges at him again, swinging with wild precision and accuracy. Beomgyu continues to parry to the best of his ability, struggling to keep up with the constant attacks. He’s being pushed back, closer and closer to the edge. The Ashmedai knows this too, pushing with a renewed effort to box him in.

Beomgyu’s blade begins to glow, the unnatural pulsing feeding off his distressed magic signature. The monster gets distracted for a moment, eyes falling to the enchanted dagger. A moment is all he needs. Beomgyu takes his opportunity, forcing the sword out of the Ashmedai’s hands.

It clatters to the ground, just out of reach. The monster growls, having lost its advantage. It doesn’t hesitate though, closing the gap between itself and Beomgyu, bringing it’s dark rough hands around his neck. Beomgyu begins to struggle, frantically swinging his arms as he is lifted off the ground.

He can’t get a solid breath in. Vision going hazy, the dingy lighting of the stairwell swimming before his eyes. He tries to scream, but no sound comes out. A few stray tears of desperation slip out as it gets harder and harder to fight back. His limbs are growing heavy and numb. The monster has him lifted high off the ground now. Definitely over the railing. 

And then he’s falling. Beomgyu feels the air whip by him, and in an instant he fears the worst. He calls on his magic, willing it to keep him off the ground. It stops him enough. Pulling up right before he becomes acquainted with the floor. Keeping him from any harsh injury. In the fall Beomgyu had lost hold of his dagger. He could hear it clattering down somewhere below. Beomgyu hit the ground. 

He bounced up, adrenaline sending him scrambling after the weapon. He hears pounding footsteps of the Ashmedai somewhere on the steps behind him, making him run faster. 

The Ashmedai appears before him. Materializing from the shadows, standing between him and his dagger. Making Beomgyu stop short. He’s breathing heavily. The monster just lets out a low growl, stalking forward. The tip of its sword came up to sit menacingly at Beomgyu’s throat. 

He inhales sharply, feeling the cold metal tracing a thin line on his neck. He looks into the face of the monster. It is truly something out of a nightmare. 

“I will not let you fulfill the prophecy…” the Ashmedai’s voice is rough and gravely.

Beomgyu lifts his hands in the universal sign of defeat. His breathing is ragged. His brain is scrabbling for a way out, eyes traveling longingly to his weapon, just out of reach.

“Can’t we talk about this…?” His voice comes out steadier than expected, but still not threatening enough to really mean anything. 

The Ashmedai just gives him a grotesque smile, bringing the tip of his blade impossibly closer to the exposed area of his throat. 

Beomgyu, in a flash, has an idea. He moves his hand quickly, palming it toward the monster. 

He whispers under his breath, “ᚲᛟᛗᛖ ᛏᛟ ᛗᛖ" 

The Ashmedai freezes, a smile still stuck on his face, but eyes bulging out in disbelief. Its eyes travel down to its chest, where a pulsating light has begun to grow. 

Beomgyu grits his teeth, pulling harder on the spell. The light explodes from the monster’s chest, causing the edges around it to disintegrate. 

The Ashmedai’s face contorts now, a look of rage taking over his features. As his body begins to fade away he makes one last lunge at Beomgyu. 

“ᚲᛟᛗᛖ ᛏᛟ ᛗᛖ!” He yells it this time. His dagger responds with renewed effort, shoving all the way through the monster and shooting into Beomgyu’s awaiting hand. 

The monster shatters, artificial body being dissolved into ash. The dust swirls around the room, giving the already dingy room an eire, otherworldly glow. It is silent, aside from Beomgyu’s own breathing and the sound of the blood rushing in his ears. 

Beomgyu lets himself take a shaky breath, crashing hard after the adrenaline rush. All he wants is to go home. He feels numb, a good type of tingling in his fingertips and the front of his face. Beomgyu isn’t sure if he is meant to smile, laugh or cry. He does none of those. Opting instead to just keep breathing, doing his best to center himself and regain control of his frenzied magic. It's going wild under his skin. The excitement of the fight and the suddenness of using a real combat spell for the first time in a while really had him wired. 

He looks down at the dagger in his hand. Beomgyu hadn’t realized he had been gripping it so tight until he looked and saw his knuckles turning white. He releases his hold, letting the dagger hang loosely by his side. He wipes the remaining ash from the blade onto his pants before returning it to its sheath. 

Beomgyu slips the weapon into his bag before exiting the stairwell. Really, the last thing he wanted to do today was get arrested. While digging in the bag he reaches for his phone. Beomgyu feels shocked when the screen flicks to life.

Three missed calls from Soobin-hyung 

Two from an unknown number 

And Seven from  Hueningkai-ah 

And an unopened voicemail, time stamped at two hours ago. He hesitates for a second before opening it. Putting the phone to his ear as he steps out onto the street. 

Hueningkai’s voice filters in through the phone,  _ “Hyung, please call me back,”  _ Beomgyu is filled with dread when Kai sounds… worried? Almost like he had been crying,  _ “After you left I came looking for you. I went to your apartment, but the police and like the- the fire department was there and it was all burnt… Like- like the whole building. They wouldn’t tell me much,”  _ Kai sniffled,  _ “They did say they didn’t think there was anyone inside your room, just-”  _ He took a deep breath,  _ “Just please call me back and-and let me know you’re okay…”  _

Beomgyu holds the phone to his ear in shock for a few moments after the recorded message ends. The Ashmedai must have gone to his home first before tracking him to Elymas’s place.

Before he can really think it over, he’s clicking on Kai’s contact and the phone is ringing. He needed to hear the kid’s voices. Hueningkai picks up on the first ring.

“Kai-ah?” Beomgyu’s voice is low and rough, considering what he’s been through in the past day, that’s not too bad.

“Oh my God Hyung!? Thank god! Are you okay??” 

Beomgyu feels himself relax substantially at the sound of Kai’s voice, even as frantic as it may be.

His voice gets shaky, “Yea… I’m okay.” 

Kai sighs deeply on the other end, Beomgyu imagines him pacing around wherever he is, “What happened to you?”

Beomgyu doesn’t even know where to start. What could he even say to describe everything that is going on right now?

He decides to start at the hospital and before he can even think, he lies, “I’m sorry I left without telling anybody. I uh- I got a call from a family member that lives downtown. It was a-a kinda an emergency…”

Kai makes a sound of understanding, prompting him to continue, “and...I-I the apartment…” Beomgyu takes a deep breath. Mind racing for an acceptable explanation. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea to tell Kai that he had found out just now, “I don’t really know that much about it… I wasn’t there when it happened. They just told me it could've been faulty wiring..”   
The excuse sounds lame to his own ears, but Kai seems to accept it. After only a moment's hesitation he speaks again, “...I’m just glad you’re okay, Hyung.”

Beomgyu looks around. He isn’t sure where he is walking anymore. Not to his apartment, not back to Elymas. He stops dead on the sidewalk. 

As if he could read his mind, Kai spoke again, breaking him out of his thoughts before they could spiral, “Do you need somewhere to stay tonight?” 

He considers it. Maybe staying with Hueningkai and Taehyun would be a good idea to keep them safe. But on the other hand, he had just killed the Ashmedai. How much danger could there be anymore? It was just the prophecy to deal with now right? Beomgyu would hate to intrude on kai and his time after all he had already done for him. 

“O-oh I couldn’t ask that of you Kai-ah… I’ve got some family in downtown Seoul,” Not really a lie, “I can stay with them until I can get a new place..” Or until he can fix this prophecy mess and disappear. 

“Okay, Hyung…” Kai sounds a bit wary, “the offer still stands if you ever need it...” 

“Thank you Kai-ah.” 

There’s a beat of awkward silence that Beomgyu doesn’t dare break. He somehow gets the feeling that Kai is gathering the courage to ask something.

And after a second, he does, “Can we meet up…?” His voice grows quiet and insecure, “I-i want to see you…” 

Beeomgyu feels his heart crack. Kai’s voice is so small and unsteady. He knows that this would be breaking the resolution he made only hours ago, but oh so much can change in that time. Beomgyu can almost hear Elymas’s voice in his head. How he had spoken with so much certainty about seer philosophy. He had said he had never met a seer that was better off for it.

Even with the prophecy, Elymas had made it clear that there was no escaping the inevitable. Like five points of a star, they were made for each other. Destined to meet. The five of them were so irreversibly intermixed through this prophecy, would it really be doing them good to keep them in the dark? Beomgyu knew he couldn’t shield them forever. 

“Yea… How about that coffee shop just off campus?” 

Kai’s voice brightens immediately, “Okay Beomgyu-Hyung! See you soon!” he takes a heavy breath, “Stay safe please..” 

Beomgyu feels the very beginnings of a smile begin to return to his wartorn face, “I will, Kai-ah.” He picks up walking again, this time with a renewed purpose. 

The cafe wasn’t a far walk per say, but it gave Beomgyu enough time to thoroughly consider his next move. He had some options. Really, only two. Tell Hueningkai the truth, or continue to keep him in the dark. Neither option felt particularly appealing at the moment. 

On one hand if he tells Kai everything, there's the potential for so much to go wrong. It could be the disastrous end to everything. On the other, to keep Kai in the dark any longer would be doing him a disservice. He was a part of the fulfillment of this prophecy, and for that, he deserved to know. 

Once again, for probably the thousandth time in the past few weeks, Beomgyu found himself reminiscing. His homeland wasn’t too far away. The place where everything was taken from him. The place where he had buried his parents and his friends prematurely. The island where he had been raised. The home where he had cultivated his magic. The temples where he had been taught the ways of the Seers. 

Was it all worth it? Was it worth throwing away everything he had learned… Well, maybe that wasn’t the right question to be asking. Was it time to go against the old Seer ways? He was the only one left after all. Why was he dedicating his life to a long dead philosophy. Time goes on. While Beomgyu had been trapped in the past, the world had not stopped spinning. People have evolved. Why can’t he evolve with them? He may be an older being, but he isn’t an ancient. Really, in the eyes of the Seers, he is still a youngling. Only an adolescent. He had to choose for himself: whether he was going to stay in the past, or move forward. 

He was at a crossroads. A divergence of paths, both equally daunting and shrouded in mystery. Despite all his wanderings he had still yet to reach a conclusion. Standing in front of the cafe entrance Beomgyu felt even more lost than before.

And then someone was hugging him. Wrapping him up into a warm and tight embrace that stilled his racing mind. Beomgyu felt his uneasy thoughts melt away as he gripped Hueningkai tighter. 

They must have looked crazy. The two of them, standing outside, not speaking, just holding each other. He heard Kai sigh, letting out a deep breath. 

When they finally separated, Beomgyu took a second to observe his dongsaeng. On the surface he looked completely fine. No cuts or bruises and no gaping wounds. Only then was he able to relax. 

It seems Kai had been doing the same as he scanned Beomgyu with a critical eye. 

It was then he became aware of his appearance. Disheveled hair and clothes. Outfit he hadn’t had a chance to change in a day, covered in a mixture of the ashes from the Ashmedia and his own blood. He had a small cut on his cheek and deep set eye bags. Kai took this all in before speaking. 

“Hyung you look awful…” His tone was in no way patronising, just real unfiltered concern. It was so ‘Kai’ that Beomgyu couldn’t help the smile that broke out onto his face. 

A laugh bubbled up in his chest, “I do, don’t I.” He looked down at himself and back at Kai who was looking at him, still with concern, but now with a trace of a smile. 

Beomgyu gestured to the door, “should we go in?” 

Kai nodded, leading the way into the restaurant and straight to a booth in the back. A place where they could have a little privacy. 

Almost as soon as they sat down, Kai started speaking, “Thank you Hyung for doing this… so last minutiae, “ He ran a hand through his hair, “I-Its just- first Taehyun, and then you disappeared... “ He looked down, avoiding eye contact with Beomgyu, “ I don’t think I can take another scare.” 

Beomgyu felt terrible. In his resolve to protect Kai, he had inadvertently hurt him. That was literally the opposite of what he had been trying to do. But the truth is: he hadn’t been thinking. He had gotten so caught up in the moment, running from what scared him. Taking the easy way out. 

“I’m really sorry I scared you…” 

Kai just gives a small shake of the head, looking up to finally meet Beomgyu’s eyes. Nothing but understanding to be found in them. Once again Beomgyu felt completely and absolutely unworthy. 

“It’s okay Hyung… I understand.” 

If only he did. Beomgyu can’t help but shake his head. He feels loose from his body, mouth and muscles working on their own. 

“I-I actually…. I need to tell you something Hueningkai-ah.” 

Kai seems to sense the tension in his Hyung, reaching out a comforting hand, placing it on top of Beomgyu’s. This action, he’s sure is meant to be reassuring, does nothing but weaken his resolve. Hueningkai is so pure. He’s too kind for this world. He doesn’t deserve this kind of burden. But as Beomgyu meets Kai’s expectant eyes he knows there is no going back. All he’s ever done is carry on. And so he will. 

Beomgyu reaches into his backpack, digging for a second before producing a crumpled and torn piece of paper. 

“How much do you know about prophecies...?”

Kai’s face twists into confusion, but he still somehow retains a reassuring smile underneath it all, “Well- Uh-” He huffs out a laugh, “Not that much...I had to take a magic theory class in high school…” He shrugs, looking a bit sheepish before asking, “Aren’t they like- a bunch of nonsense..?” 

Beomgyu wishes. Oh how he wished that it was all a bunch of nonsense. 

“No…” He places the paper down between the two of them, “Kai-ah they’re real-” He hesitates for a moment, gauging the younger's reaction, “-and you’re in this one.” 

Kai suddenly leans back against the booth, letting out a breath of air. He has an air of bewilderment about him, “Wha- wait… hold on- just back up a little,” He runs a hand through his hair. 

Beomgyu leaned back too, a small portion of the weight on his chest had been lifted. Telling Kai had been like ripping off a bandaid, “ I can’t really explain all that much... “ 

Beomgyu hadn’t gotten this far in his head. When he had played out this scenario he hadn’t really decided what all he was going to tell Kai. He knew he had to tell about the prophecy, but his heritage? And what about the Ashmedai? How it had been the one to attack Taehyun? And all the visions? He wasn’t sure how much to share without scaring him away. 

Kai’s expression had always been easy to read. He wore his emotions on his sleeve. And now, as Beomgyu looked at his friend, all he could see was pure confusion. 

“Are you sure you didn’t hit your head hyung…” Beomgyu knows Kai is only asking out of innocent concern, but that doesn’t stop the small amount of frustration from bubbling up inside him. 

“No.” He says it with so much certainty that Kai snaps his mouth shut, “Kai-ah I’m serious, you and your friends. You're all in danger,” Once the words start, it’s hard to stop them from tumbling out, “What happened with Taehyun-”

Luckily Kai cuts him off, “-was a terrible accident.” His voice is steady and concerned. Beomgyu’s frustration boils over. 

“No. It was magic.” Beomgyu’s breath is coming in heaves, but the relief that came with that statement is overwhelming. It only lasts for a moment though as Hueningkai’s calm outer appearance is slowly fading. 

“What are you saying…” Kai leans in, fixing Beomgyu with a kind of inquisitive look he hadn’t seen before on his friend's features.

“I-” Beomgyu knows what he needs to say next, but the words feel lodged in his throat. His voice comes out as only a hoarse whisper, “I have magic…” 

Kai just looks lost. Beomgyu finds himself breathless. He hasn’t admitted that sentence to another being, human or otherwise, in years. He’s filled with apprehension at Kai’s lack of response, before he can even stop himself, he’s talking again.

“I’m so sorry I lied to you- I-just-” 

Kai’s face is unreadable now. Where previously his emotions had been on display for all to see, now they were guarded, almost hurt. 

“Is there more you need to tell me?” His voice isn’t nearly as unreadable as his face. Hueningkai is scared. That realization rushes over him like cold water. Beomgyu doesn't know if it's directed toward him or the situation itself, but Kai is scared and uncomfortable and that makes him feel awful. 

“Kai, I’m sorry…” 

He just lets out a harsh sigh, hands running through his hair again. 

“Hyung do you know how crazy you sound right now… I mean, normally I wouldn’t believe you, but-” He sighs again, processing everything he had just been told. Beomgyu stays quiet, involuntarily biting his lip out of anxiety. 

“You know, “ Beomgyu looks up to meet his dongsaeng’s eyes, “maybe Yeonjun had a point…” 

It’s Beomgyu’s turn now to be confused. What did any of this have to do with Yeonjun? 

“What?” 

“He showed me a picture Hyung!” Beomgyu just shakes his head, not quite following where this was going, “It looked exactly like you, but it was from like-like the 1800s or something crazy. A-and I defended you!” Kai enunciates each of his words by tapping the table, “So what else do you have to tell me?” 

Beomgyu’s in shock. His whole world feels like it’s flipping on its axis. He’s on a boat that’s sinking and there’s nowhere else to go but down. He opens his mouth to speak, but no words come out.

Kai just nods, disappointed. He starts standing up to leave. Beomgyu starts to panic. He finds enough strength to form one word. 

“Wait!” 

Kai looks back, his lips pressed in a thin line, but his eyes expectant. 

“I’m not mad at you hyung...I just want to know the truth…” They stare at each other for a few moments longer. Beomgyu wrestles with his tongue and his brain, trying to force the two to work together for just one second.

“I-I was only trying to protect you…” It wasn’t exactly what he wanted to say, and it seemed like not what Kai wanted to hear. His expression changed back to that of disappointment.

“You know what, I'm getting really sick of people doing that. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself…. Maybe you should try taking care of yourself for once hyung!” Some patrons of the cafe were giving them sidelong glances now, but Beomgyu couldn’t find it in himself to care. 

Kai turns to leave again, takes a step and then turns for the final time, “Call me when you’re ready to tell me the whole truth… I'll be there.”

Beomgyu can’t find any words as he watches Hueningkai’s retreating figure. He doesn’t try to stop the other boy. He doesn’t call out or grab his arm. Beomgyu lets him go. And maybe that’s the thing he regrets the most.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Something evil finds Kai and another reveal


End file.
